We're back again, believers! And a few weeks late again, as usual...this time, what's our excuse, hmmm? Uh, let's see — we forgot what bi-weekly means and thought we had a bye week (or two), instead? Swallow that one — if you dare...
FALL AGAIN
Face it — the end of the year is up on us again — the last quarter staring us in the face — and what have we got to show for it? A mountain of unfinished business and the usual complaints — it seems there's just never enough time to script another entry into this never-ending story...but oh, well — here's the latest scoop anyway.
THE CHANGING OF THE MAPLE
Irreconciable differences have prompted the sudden resignation of Pat Samson, long time drummer for US Maple. Filling in for the All Tomorrow's Parties dates only will be Thymme Jones (Brise Glace, Cheer Accident, You Fantastic!). Who will be the new Maple drummer? --- Update 8/31/01: New U.S. Maple drummer is lucky Adam "The Kid" Vida of Chicago's Central Falls.
NEW RELEASES
So, what's so all-fired important that it's been preventing us from inscribing these golden words atcha? Well, one thing might be the new releases we just finished pushing on the nations last week. As you may recall, we've been putting a few titles together for our distributed labels and for the second release date in a row, Drag City is proud to present...new releases not on Drag City! Last time, it was those estimable new releases on Moikai — Orton Socket and Triangles, both of which went out there and found their audience and continue to and we wish them the best of luck. And there's more of each of them here, in both LP and CD form, so issue us an order and we'll make sure you get what you're looking for. And add these hot new titles from names you know and love — Derek Bailey and Noël Akchotè! Nurse With Wound! LIttle Annie Anxiety! And our very own — David Grubbs! First and foremost is a title from faraway France. David Grubbs has been collaborating the past few years with the men of Rectangle Records, first making "The Coxcomb" as an LP with them, then bringing Noël Akchotè and Charlie O into his specially constructed The Spectrum Between fray. The musical results have been charming and compelling, so why stop there? Additional music from these talents appeared on "The Coxcomb/Avocado Orange" CD (released on Blue Chopsticks earlier this year), and now on the new CD release from Rectangle, "Thirty-Minute Raven." So, if you're following the narrative here, that's the name of the new David Grubbs CD we're now selling as a limited import edition. Beyond this, what more can we tell you? Lots, probably — but let's keep it brief, there's so much on the agenda this week — ''Thirty-Minute Raven" is the latest upgrade of material that Grubbsie's been kicking around around various museums and compilation albums for the last little bit of time now. And it's the whole The Spectrum Between band playing on it. And as thirty-minute pieces go, it's quite pleasant. We're selling the few copies we brought over to as many shops as we can , but should you wish to surpass the middleman — and why wouldn't you? — please see our special orders page. Now, when he isn't retooling his own previous output (or sometime as he's doing so), David Grubbs stays in business with his Blue Chopsticks imprint. Previous releases have included titles from Luc Ferrari, Grubbs and Mats Gustafsson, Van Oehlen, Gustafsson solo, and Grubbs solo. Joining these in existance is a CD reissue of Close to the Kitchen, an LP of guitar duets from Noël Akchotè and Derek Bailey. It first came out back in 1996 on Rectangle (them again!) and is now making it's digital (and domestic) debut. And we're calling it BC6, for accounting purposes. But otherwise, it remains consistant — it's still Akchotè and Bailey, tearing it up in a titantic series of duets that'll move ya, for sure — several inches off the ground, probably, at the most intense moments. Buy it, and defy gravity!
STREAMLINING THINGS
Those are a couple of our new releases. Then we've got a couple more, both on the Streamline label. We've told you about this already, haven't we? It's our newest distributed label, true, but in the general scheme of things, we're late to the Streamline party. In the course of polling the nation for sales, we discovered that a lot of people out there really adore the Streamline thing. They've been making records (actually, mostly CDs) for the better part of a decade now, under a number of different umbrellas, and they arrive at Drag City with a roster of unique, occasionally unheard-of arists. Sure, the names Keiji Heino and Merzbow may ring a bell — or maybe not. The same is true of Mimir, Limpe Fuchs, John Duncan, Morphogenesis, Intersystems, Ragnar Grippe, and others — Joey Q. Everyman may not be hip (yet) - but if he's interested in the clarion call of ringing creativity, he's gonna have to get with it. SO, dig Streamline. Along the lines they've so illustriously established, we've got a double-LP reissue of Nurse With Wound's Thunder Perfect Mind. We're no experts, but it seems to us that the thing Nurse With Wound is known for is elusive — even more elusive than calling it a thing! Having listened to this release, phrases like 'deconstructed,' 'ambient,' 'post-psychedelic,' and 'noise,' don't quite serve their purposes, but whatever this music actually is, it's clearly touched a nerve over the years. And it's clear to see why — Thunder Perfect Mind is singular and hearing it eminate from the stereo speakers, unforgettable. Now then, over these so-called years we were just talking about, Nurse With Wound have put out just dozens of releases, so you'd do well to ask — what makes Thunder Perfect Mind deservant of being the first domestic Nurse With Wound release ever? Even if we knew the real reason, we'd still have to suggest that the answer, friend, lies in the unprecedented richness of the grooves — so get thee to the local recorderry and find out for yourself! Man, that turned out to be a sweet sales pitch. Ah, well — on to the next one!
ALSO from Streamline, and also from a mysterious place in the cosmos, is Little Annie, who is also a name from the past also. Several pasts, in fact — her first turn in the world of social statementure (music, kids) came as Annie Anxiety in the early days of Crass, when the world was just getting post-punk for the first, and best, time. Ah, that's not true, but it sounded good last night. The later 80s/90s found Annie fronting the On-U sound system for a record or two. "Diamonds Made of Glass" finds Little Annie singing a couple of charred torch songs against a desolate backdrop. It's kinda eerie. The haunting comes in two formats — 12" vinyl and CDEP. Fifteen minutes of sound that seem to come from somewhere in eternity — so fans of time and melody are invited to get the slice of their choosing today.
So those are our new releases. Any more questions?
FROSTING
Also new to us and you still is the wonder wonderful new LP from Edith Frost, Wonder Wonder (didn't see that coming, did you?). Released during the Ides of July, Edith's latest has been turning heads. Lots of heads. If we hear one more person say it's her best record ever, we're going to...well, we'll probably thank them too! But seriously, Wonder Wonder has gotten some really terrific notices as it blows out of the gate. One that stands out was the audio review broadcast on NPR's All Things Considered. They loved it! Check the link on our Front Page to take you there. Meanwhile, AAA radio is picking up on the big, brawny hits of the record ("Cars and Parties," "Further") and giving them the wider exposure they deserve. And none of these radio heavies have even come around to hit us up for a kickback yet! What, do they bill you later now? Also meanwhile on the Edith Front, dewey-eyed boys and girls alike are responding to "classic" Edith — the smoldering ballad style upon which her name has been built. As we ring up the sales, we have to take a moment to marvel — Wonder Wonder is truly an album for everyone. At a penultimate moment such as this, what's a girl to do? Raise the bar, we say! That's why Edith's heading out on the road for the first serious time in a couple of years(!). Yup, she's taking her act north, south, east and west (see TOUR PAGE) in promotion of Wonder Wonder with her biggest bestest band yet — lots of players playing lots of instruments and singing along — once again, in the attempt to get a little something for everyone out there, friends and strangers alike. Good luck, Edith!
WHEN LANDS THE SUPERSESSION
Man is it going to be something when Tramps, Traitors and Little Devils finally comes out. I mean, we've been talking The Drag City Supersession up forever (it's Neil Michael Hagerty, Edith Frost and Bill (Smog) Callahan, with significant others), we've had an mp3 of "Zero Degrees" up on the website for months, there's already been a series of hype-ups of the gosh-darned thing already on this page, and we're still probably like a month away from actually releasing the record. Oh, but when we do! That's when you get involved. You will thrill to the new tunes from these three great talents! You'll chill to the cover tunes, an eclectic blend that finds Bill Callahan singing to "The Girl on the Billboard," Edith Frost singing a sassy ode to "Charley's Girl," and Neil Micheal Hagerty wailing a paen to one of those unnamable evil deities (the song's called "N.I.B"). And you'll go completely ape-shit wild when you get a gander at the outrageously out-of-time cover graphics, delivered to us from the mysterious head-quarters of Plastic Crimewave (aka Steve Krakow, author and guru of The Galactic Zoo Dossier — copies still available from yours truly, Drag City)! It's all too much. It's done just as tastefully as you please, and God, it's entertaining! So for the last fucking time, look for it in September!
RAIN ON LENS
At that same time, proof of life will be proffered from the (Smog) chambers. Yes, the master of the truly morose (but musically morose) is back with an album that has been much anticipated (by us) since the stinging sensations from the last release abated. Rain On Lens is more than just the next Smog album — it's the new (Smog) album. And one of the best Bill's brought to our underground bunker, continuing a trend from the last few years, wouldn't you say? The ever-growing legions of (Smog) fans don't know how good they've got it — but they will soon. (Smog) really unloads on you this time, with some tunes that'll really getcha — flat-out, unbelievable songs delivered in a disarmingly straightforward manner. And with it, (Smog) gets a little more dangerous. Lock up your daughters and keep an eye on them — they might just be planning a midnight break to go driving with Mr. (Smog). If they do, the joke's on them — a "Short Drive," awaits, ahhaahhaahahaa! You'll know what that means when you get the record. But trust us, you're gonna love it. We shouldn't even really have to say this, should we? (Smog) fans are in a zone, what we think doesn't affect them. They're just like him. But fans, listen to this — the LP will come to you in a heavy vinyl pressing (180gm, if you're counting) wrapped in a glossy black-and-white cover with extra-heavy lyrics on the inner sleeve — so look for that vinyl. In a head-to-head test, it sounded better. You want your (Smog) to sound as good as it can be, don't you? Rain on Lens hits the streets on September 17, 2001. Keep your eyes peeled, and your bananas at the ready....
JIM'S IN
Lately, your hero and ours Jim O'Rourke has been hot — finishing an album or two a day. In the process, new materials for Wilco and Stereolab have been prepared for their entry into the major-label military-industrial complex. And we know they'll do well there — Jim's ear grows ever-sharper, and as it does, his mixes become more and more mainstream. Whether it's the commercial mainstream or the O'Rourke mainstream we're referring to, we're never quite sure — but man, are they slick. And Jim's extreme humor comes shining through at all times, of course. Such a human presence! It's full extention, that's what it is, and all in the service of others! Good show, dear boy — your nobility (coupled with those amazing sounds) is inspirational. But wait! Can it be? What's come across our desk this week? Why, it's the biggest news this year for our Jim. In the process of finishing all these records, he actually (and perhaps even accidentally) finished his very own Next Album — the pop opus to be for several years in a row now since Eureka hit deep, and struck gold, back in '99. We've been speaking wishfully about this record for quite some time. Insignificance, it's going to be called. And guess what? Ah, you probably already know; this record is a trip! The big surprise is that it's not the trip you're expecting. If you want a Eureka 2, you better just run out and buy yourself a second copy of Eureka (by George, that's not a bad idea at all, come to think of it...) Yeah, because Insignificance has a vibe and feel all of it's own. Jim's new songs aren't just pallid rewrites of successful O'Rourkian formulas (God knows, we can always reorder another couple thousand O'Rourke CDs whenever we need more of them old formulas around) — no, they're all new-songs with all-new formulas! It may be hard, but think back to the time before Bad Timing — you didn't expect that, but you got it, and then you came to expect it! Then Eureka came out and it wasn't what you expected, but you loved it. And now look at you, you fucker — you're expecting something you've heard before all over again. Trust us, it's just not going to happen. What will happen will definitely be shocking, thrilling, and all those other things great records always are — but just not for the reasons you think, okay? Get over it. We don't want to give away too much of the surprise here (because that's where it's at with Jim — he wants to surprise you), but check this out — these new songs of his are rock songs through and through. You will choogle. And you will giggle. Amusement and amazement are guaranteed on Mr. O'Rourke's wild ride. So start getting ready — if you could possibly even know how. It will come out in November — which ain't hardly soon enough — we can't wait to lay it on you!
IN THE (PRINT) WORKS
It's been a good year for the Drag City Print division — sales on John Fahey's How Bluegrass Music Destroyed My Life have forged strongly on ahead in this new, posthumous era, while at the same time, a new star is being born as the world comes alive to the fan-aticism of Steve Krakow's Galactic Zoo Dossier (which will be looked at by the discerning eyes of MOJO, who ought to know the real thing when they see one, in the September issue on sale this month. Look for the Doors on the cover!). Meanwhile, the creative teams over there have been working overtime to get several exciting new releases together. First, there's the new Minus Times - issue 27, we believe. Hunter Kennedy and the gang are back, with still more from the generation whose time has yet to come. They're not lost, exactly — nor are they a love generation, by any means. And you can't file them under X, either. The prose and poems of The Minus Times reflect something a little more timeless than any of that shit. The new issue will hit the stands in September. Also due this fall is a slim volume we've been waiting on for a while now. We can't help it — we're fans of Alan Licht and his wide-open way of looking at the world around him. Usually, this just makes for awesome conversation — but Alan one-upped us this time, and has composed a whole book full of reflections, essays, and other, smaller observations as re: his life in music. Given that the man came up, to a certain degree, in the gay '80s, should it surprise you that it's called An Emotional Memoir of Martha Quinn? And given the man's sense of humor, is it any wonder the book ain't about Martha Quinn at all? These things, and other delights, await you when you finally crack the binding on this one — hopefully sometime before the end of the year. Also due from the print chute is a comic magazine we're excited to tell you about. It's an understatement to say that Royal Trux had more than their share of adventures over the course of their decade in the rock arena — the shame of it is that so many of these tales remain untold. The Royal Trux comic book goes a long way to rectifying that — with an epic, star-crossed tale of witchcraft, intrigue and rock n roll that captures the flavor of the Silver and Gold age of comics. Also included in the tale is an explanation of the calamatitious final days of RTX. It's a can't-miss affair, coming to a newstand near sometime this fall.
BONNIE 'PRINCE' ROAD TRIP
Citizens of America and other select countries have had a good year this year — because Bonnie 'Prince' Billy has been out there with them a whole bunch ths year, playing in celebration of a truly celebratory album (Ease Down the Road, of course) with a number of good, close friends in places both high and low. He's out there again now as we speak — hitting outposts in the mid- and near-west from Chicago to Boulder. With his this time is a band of beautiful, well-seasoned musicians as well as Chestnut Station's own Rian Murphy, whose collaborative EP with Will Oldham ("All Most Heaven") will be performed in it's entirety as many nights nights out there as possible. T-shirts have been made and everything is going to be great — check the tour dates page and whatever you do, don't miss it!
ALL THE (ROAD) RAGE
And you know what else? Don't miss anything for the next couple of months — there's just too damn much that's good coming down the road for any of you to take time off from going down the club and checking it all out! What the hell are we talking about? First of course there's all the bands heading off to All Tomorrow's Parties out there in Los Angeles. For the record, this means (Smog), Neil Michael Hagerty, U.S. Maple and Papa M will all be at large in America in October. Before all that, Papa M has some dates in Scotland — and if you can make it there, you can certainly make it at All Tomorrow's Parties, don't you think? Look on the tour pages and look for dates involving several, if not all of these artists together on one sense-stunning bill! Meanwhile, David Grubbs will be way over there in Germany, playing solo shows as well as a pair of trio performances at the Berlin Podewill Xtract Chicago Festival, one in collaboration with Tony Conrad and Dan Brown, the other with Noël Akchotè and Quentin Rollet. Also flying over Europe in September and October — The Fucking Champs, at last! Fiendishly taking advantage of a "relationship" with Trans Am, they are opening every dates on their whistle-stop tour tour of the British Isles — playing an unthinkable fifteen dates in many provincial towns (sorry, blokes!) from London to Dublin, with a jaunt up north for bloody good measure. After that experience, it's on to the continent, where word is, they'll open for some group called Pleasure Forever (ever heard of them? believers?) in such diverse countries as France, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, Italy and (last and least), the Netherlands. Euro-fans are sure to be as delighted as their American forebears, but US fans shouldn't choke on their gum just yet — The Fucking Champs will warm up for this epic journey with a quick trip through the northeast, touching down in Boston, Providence and New York City, for a two-day stand at Brownie's, their home away from home (when in New York). Yep — it's a lot of pure live action, all culminating in a potentially incredible All Tomorrow's Parties (US) event. But even after that dust clears, ATP collaborative curator O'Rourke will be in Japan with fellow ATPCC Thurston Moore as well as Mats Gustafsson. Bonnie Billy will be back out there too. And of course Edith, and others, too. The wheel keeps on turning....
SO, we'll see you in a couple weeks ...yeah, right! Until we meet again, work on acceptance people — and the correct pronunciation of the world "Monthly." And we'll see you then —