2008 — and the Drag City orbit continues to span deeper into uncharted interstellar regions! As our slow revolution draws us forward, state-of-the-art equipment (combined with our favorite old space junk) relays sounds and images back to the home planet for the enjoyment of all. Thus, a universe is gradually discovered, forgotten and rediscovered again. Searching for whatever it is we’re looking and listening for is always a pleasure; the role we play in this cosmos we call home grows ever more humble for every light-year we pass through. To be honest, traveling through space and time is a bitch; but finding new life out there is still the ultimate high. Come with us on our great space coaster, won’t you? Drag City wanna take you to the top!

January 2008 — time to plan another year. Doubtless, some may wonder, why haven’t the wizened old masters gathered around the Drag City round table already worked out the 2008 release schedule? Well, we like to live in the moment. If we know what we’re going to do in January way back in August, then January becomes a still-born moment, conceived so long ago, you can’t really feel it anymore. That’s something we just can’t tolerate — we want the now today, not yesterday! We’re not mind readers and we never wanted to be. Plus, we never know what the hell we’re doing until the last minute. But now that the last minute has come upon us, we’ve got great and exciting releases planned all the way until...would you believe, May? OK, April. Look, we’re not miracle workers here. But there are some fantastic releases coming up — some new releases and old; a few new names on the roster mixed with a couple old blokbusters. That’s the way we like it — all over the place! Read on, and we’ll slowly spill it for you...

January 22, 2008 – Drag City has new releases to share with the new world in this new year! Before we get started, does anyone else feel like 2008 is already as a comfortable old shoe on your wandering soles? It doesn’t feel like that much of a new year — leaving us with a nagging suspicion that maybe the Chinese were right, and this calendar of ours was just foisted upon us by governments determined to keep a neighbor down! But what can we do? We set our clocks back for daylight savings time, pen felt-hearted odes to whatever season we’re told it is and eat whatever they put in the supermarkets for us — and receive only suspicion and emptiness for our efforts. Damn this western world!

Anyway...to escape the existential ennui that I’m sure you’re all feeling too, we’d like to introduce you to a new friend. Her name is Baby Dee, and she’s a tender soul, a great storyteller, a singer of great and unique proportions and a deft, seasoned pianist to boot — among many other things, some of which are also to be found in her exciting new album Safe Inside the Day. Dee’s played around with Antony and the Johnsons and made records for David Tibet’s Durtro label, but the sound of her new record will be an inspiration to those who know her as well as the rest of you who don’t! Produced by Matt Sweeney and Bonny Billy, Safe Inside the Day finds Baby Dee surrounded by an all-star cast of NYC ringers (including Andrew WK, playing his classically-trained heart out). The arrangements run from gentle and heart-broken to sinister and hip-shaking, always telling a story in a way that we the people can relate to. It’s the definition of beauty.

We’ve also got releases three and four from the Language of Stone label, bringers to you of the reverberant sounds of Mountain Home and Orion Rigel Domisse. For their second batch, they’ve prepared Ex Reverie, who play folk rock running loud to soft on The Door into Summer and Ilya Monosov who whispers his poetic verse enigmatically over mellow jams on Seven Lucky Plays, or How to Fix Songs for a Broken Heart.

That’s right — we got sounds for all kinds of people, starting today. Consult your local pusher, or work the net to bring these sounds you need into your home today.

February is a special month on the calendar for us, and not just because of its mutant-like 29 days. No, February 2008 stands out because of the new release date we’ve scheduled for the 26th — a date that brings back the warmth and good vibes of classic Drag City releases from the gay 90s! Consider this: two barely-released records from the early 70s that we proudly reissued sometime in the sort-of recent past on the universally accepted format for contemporary music (don’t let them tell you otherwise), the compact disc — now coming back to you on the classical, never-dead and once again growing format of vinyl LP! Would you believe Mayo Thompson’s Corky’s Debt to His Father and Gary Higgins’ Red Hash? It’s true! And both come with a 7” record stuffed in their sleeve featuring tracks not on the original vinyl versions! These tracks are mostly previously-released, but not on vinyl, kid. And in case you’ve been living under a rock these past couple of years, here’s the word on the street: the sound of vinyl is richer and more dynamic than anything else available — certainly the downloads that are the tragic sound-in-trade of our younger generations, and more spacious and live-er than the CD that was once rumored to have buried the LP all those years ago. Plus, there’s things you can do on a record you couldn’t possibly do on an iPod — like fucking, for instance. Long story short of all this is, you’ve got to have one of these limited edition Corky’s Debt to His Father and Red Hash LPs before they’re all gone and you’re just left with your stupid old digital copies that you can’t fuck on. And we’ll be bringing back another couple of long-gone vinyl products to make February a vinyl month to remember.

What do you mean, you ain’t a-marching anymore? Talk to us in two months, punk — you’ll be Marching, along with the rest of us. Man can’t avoid it in this shithy calendar we’ve been saddled with — but we’ve got something to make March a month worth marching through: a special new band! Singer’s the name, and Chicago’s their home. But they're equally comfortable playing their brand of discomfiting guitars-bass-drums-and-everybody. Yeah, everybody brings something to the rock wherever they go — and we anticipate they’ll go everywhere before they’re through. This is no first-time around group here — Singer’s comprised of Robert A.A. Lowe, Todd Rittmann, Adam Vida and Ben Vida, all of whom have circled the globe previously under one name or another. Their sound? Shattered, natch! Everybody brings something to the table, and all four of these kids sing, harmonizing new chords over their communal cacapho-din. The music couldn’t come from anyone else, which is why we love ‘em. Their live show features lots of good-old fashioned interactive fun (as opposed to the bloodless new ‘interactive’ we know in this young millennium) with laughs alongside of the marveling about how they rock. The album’s called Unhistories, and among other things, it claims to address the homeless crisis with a physical solution. We’ll leave that part to you to judge, but the overall assessment is ours: Singer is awesome!

...Monotonix, that is! They’re the latest new name to be added to the scrolls of Drag City releases. Their EP “Body Language,” is due out in April, and we daresay, it almost catches the thrill of seeing them live! Twasn’t it ever thus? The act of recording is so often the action of reducing — but never more than in the name of Monotonix, whose live show is of the people, for the people and usually by the people! Perhaps you’ve seen these guys — for although they’re Israeli, they’ve spent a good bit of time running the U.S. highways and byways in search of another venue to explore. And explore they do — the only place they leave unfamiliar with is the stage! The audience is a part of the show for Monotonix. They ought to be — the boys are set up right out there with them — all guitar, drums and singer of them! As they move through the crowd throughout the show (drums included), everybody gets a feel for what’s happening in the world of rock. And it rules. We’re very excited to be bringing you the most accurately-titled EP of 2008: “Body Language” by Monotonix.

It's been way too long! What have we become in the meantime? Starved children of O'Rourkestan, suck in your bloated guts and prepare for a feast of sounds here in the 2008! Your resuscitation begins with just a morsel or two about what's coming down the pipe. First comes an exhaustive reissue program addressing as many of the early Jim O'Rourke recordings as we can get our hot little hands on! It starts in May with reissues of Tamper (originally released on Extreme in 1991) and Osorezan (Polystar Jazz Library, 2006). After that comes Long Night, on Streamline, a double-disc release of pure drone that dates way, way back but is only now seeing the light of day. And what a day to finally shine on it! The children of the world are weaving drone music into their everyday lives — at last! Hopefully, that happens sometime over the summer or in the fall. Then comes the main course the new Jim O'Rourke album. It should be finished sometime early this year and then who knows what'll happen, who we'll be, what music will be like then? Until we know, we're on red O'lert.

Yeah, it’s cold and windy and snowy and horrible, we know. That’s why the Junta that Is calls it winter! So get used to it — and get out in it! The cold days ahead promise some of the most brain-flaming warmth around out on the live circuit. Witness — Six Organs of Admittance are combing the North American nations, searching for like-minded eyes in which to wildly stare and ears for to pour the tangled tunes and sudden harmony that is the sound by which they live. The Shelter from the Ash American tour is especial in its he-said, she-said duo alignment. And for two timeless weeks in late Jan/early Feb, Mick Turner is on the bill in a series of increasingly-rare solo appearances. And Randall of Nazareth will opening up in Philly. With or without them, don’t not be there!

Also “doing” the north Americas is Baby Dee, out with the boys celebrating her new release Safe Inside the Day. Dee’s live show comes on with the force of an Irish wake — deep respect and high hilarity in the name of a life lived, with all its triumphs and absurdities. She’ll have her harp as well as her band, so the moods will come fast and furious. It’s an incredible show, unlike most things we’ve ever seen. We can’t wait to see it another couple of times. And we hope we’ll see you parked somewhere in the shadows.

America, America, America...it seems that’s all we’re talking about in this ever-lovin’ tour update! Well not no more. Sir Richard Bishop can be counted to break the mold everytime, and he’s doing it again by taking to Europe with everything he’s got. The first half of February, he’s trotting his six-string mastery all up and down the British Isle, then hitting the continent with Earth, where he’ll be playing numerous countries through March.

...unfortunately, that’s about it outside of America. The rest of the peeps is kicking it close to home – like RTX, who are undertaking a mind-blowing month of shows in support of their retitled RaTX LP/CD (good copies still available). In this month, it’s highly unlikely they won’t be rocking doors off their hinges in a dive somewhere near you, so be sure and pencil Jennifer and the RTX boys in wherever you’re most likely them. Your hard-rock tooth will thank you!

Speaking of rocking and everywhere, newest Drag City members Monotonix start off in Portland on February 22nd and don’t fucking stop until April 26th! That’s like, what, two years? They’ll be playing several dates with RTX, including at least one at SXSW. As we mentioned, they have a wildly fun stage show and make more out of a guitar and drums and vocals than we’ve heard in a long, long time. So check them out before their EP comes out — then you can say you were there!

Also heading back out on the icy American road is mister Bill “Not Smog” Callahan. Perhaps a little less icy than most however — Bill’s cleverly crafted a tour of southern locales for February and March. Peace on, Bill!

As the writer’s strike drones on, shuttering the doors of so many television institutions including venerable old Saturday Night Live, SNL cast member Fred Armisen is taking back to the stages that seasoned him, bringing his contempo-comic routines to joints coast-to-coast — and in the process, presenting the percussive lessons of Jens Hannemann to his audiences wherever he goes. If you like to laugh and you want to learn about the art of drumming, don’t miss Fred’s shows. They’re a two-fer — at least!

Also happening are local shows for Boston propers Major Stars, where they’ll play songs from their storied career as well as last years’ Pure Rock Album of the Year, Mirror/Messenger. Still available on vinyl!

Wanna go to a Joanna Newsom orchestral show that isn’t sold out? Too bad, they’re all sold out, from Sydney to NYC. Oh, wait — another show has opened up at the Brooklyn Academy of Music! Here’s your chance. Wait another couple hours and you’ll be effed, we promise.

Speaking of sold-out shows, Chicago sensation Singer have a couple of gigs coming up that you don’t wanna miss! They’re not with booking agent yet, so Chicago shows are easiest for them at present — and since the kids know what they like, expect these shows to be packed out! Be at the Hideout on February 4 and Subterranean on February 22nd to see what I mean.

After all this comes more! Because after all, isn’t that what you want? We’ve got the soundtrack for Harmony Korine’s Mister Lonely slated for April, featuring the soundtracky sounds of Jason Spaceman and Sun City Girls. We’ve got more Language of Stone releases! There’s going to be a new Silver Jews record sometime in ’08, we promise. And lots of other music, live shows, television promotions, dry t-shirt contests and more!

It’s what we’re living for.

Rian Murphy
Drag City Inc.