What have you been up to? Been busy? Good — us too! Oh, we’re still doing what comes natural — putting out records, exploring new options, planning potential events — and generally being too overwhelmed by it all to think. Thank god we’ve got these records to fall back on. The catalog keeps growing and growing — and naturally we dig it — and so, like so many other months we've known, this month finds another couple of numbers being added to this list. We’ll get to those in a minute. But first…

WHAT LIES BEHIND?
Some of you out there have no doubt been wondering about the fabulous new image that strikes your eyes when you click on www.dragcity.com. And being the fans that you are, you probably don’t need us to tell you that it’s King Kong frontman Ethan Buckler demonstrating a few of his ineffable dance moves. Should you employ those moves yourself, you’ll discover a device that may help you penetrate the many mysteries of The Big Bang. At three months and counting, the word is still getting out about what an epic work of adventure and disco The Big Bang is — but for us, it’s old news — every King Kong record has taken us further into the mysteries of the universe than we ever expected to go. If you are looking for something different, you should definitely check this release out.

Of course, King Kong’s The Big Bang is just one of the awesome delights crowding up our rearview mirror these days. Yeah, the year up until now has been dotted with sonic delights, starting back in February with the Neil Michael Hagerty Plays that Good Old Rock and Roll LP/CD. Then in March, there was the frabjous, acoustically heavy Hagerty-produced Brother JT3 LP/CD, Spirituals. Both of these records offered a lot of spirituality and things to not only think about, but also to groove upon. So we did. Then came April, and King Kong, which we’ve just discussed. Obviously, there's lots more groovin' going on with the Kong album, and if we didn't say it before, we'll tell you now — The Big Bang is truly one of the most ingenious records of the year — so ingenious, as a matter of fact, that you won’t see this record on too many critics lists at the end of the year. King Kong is a critic-proof group —- they exist on the visceral plane of pure inspiration. For fans only — fans of the pure creative light, that is.

More recently, the pace has only picked up. May and June were a blur, thanks to two big new releases. Both David Grubbs’ Rickets & Scurvy and The Fucking Champs V have been flying out the door with the quickness — you know, the extreme quickness? As befits records of their magnitude. And you know this. So that's enough said about the rearview mirror.

Suddenly, it’s July, and all we’ve been dealing with is what lies behind us. So what’s next?

THE RISING OF THE SUNTANAMA
A new month brings us…an all-new group. However, we freely admit that listening to the self-titled debut LP/CD of The Suntanama will introduce you the listener to an all-new band playing a sound that some out there might just find a little bit...familiar. With The Suntanama, it's not too hard to put your finger on it — what you're hearing is that old Universal cropping up in the music; something that seems to bubble up out of the earth herself. And The Suntanama have got a little of that something — a little pinch between the cheek and gum, so to speak, and they’re ready to roll. Because The Suntanama are a band crammed with natural talent, hailing you from the many and various streets of New York City. And The Suntanama is an LP brimming with acoustic folk and old school grooves. It’s mountain music for street people — and this tattered collective are bringing it deep from the mountain high, taking an ancient air of mystery from their brothers-in-arms NNCK and transforming it into a rolling-and-tumbling work of 21st century rock and blues. Topping the whole organic beat-beast are the formidable pipes of Darren “Catfish” Zoltowski whose frontman stance is a work of classical rock-art. Fortunately, the album we're hawking today captures it all and more, and delivers it to you for at-home listening. Still and all, a group like this couldn't get it on without being a crack live band. To this end, they’ve got shows in NYC and elsewhere coming up — but don’t wait for all that to come down, instead purchase the album right away. As of today, it’s available to be in shops everywhere. And when we say album, we suggest you come with us to the land of wind and vinyl dreams — for the sound of The Suntanama is best appreciated when extracted from the deluxe 12"x12" leaves of an LP jacket. Seeing the art rendered this way will provide you with the perfect accompaniment to the acoustic reverie locked into the grooves of the record. Rise, Suntanama, rise!

THE FUCKING CHAMPS TAKE OVER
Meanwhile, several time-zones away, The Fucking Champs have returned home. Now these mighty warriors are in repose — tending to battle scars, re-stringing their axes and bows, repairing the chariot — in short, doing all the things that Fucking Champs do after concluding yet another crusade. They've stormed the many and varied local fiefdoms scattered across North America, stopping occasionally to fly their flag in the witness of yet another horde of local admirers. They’ve done their conquering and everywhere, everyone agreed — they ruled. However, one continent does not a world make — and so, we urge all unincorporated peoples to purchase copies of IV and V today. Your future on earth hangs in the balance.

THE AUGUST CALL-UP: WEIRD WAR COMES TO THE WORLD
Got plans for August? Cancel ’em! We’ve got something coming out then that’s going to take up all your time, a new obsession for you and the kids. It’s called Weird War — and this time, it’s being staged right here, in the homeland. We want the US (you and me, that is) out of the Middle East, the Phillipines and all those other faraway places — because there’s a battle that itching to be fought right here in these American streets that we call home!

Fortunately, Weird War have already landed a blow to get this party started right. Recruited for this challenging task were a few good men and women, including Ian Svenonius and Michelle Mae, both formerly of The Make Up. Neil Michael Hagerty was called upon to add his journeyman’s poise, songwriting skills and unpredictably right-on guitar techniques. Steve McCarty and Jessica Espeleta rounded out the aggregate, allowing Weird War to stand upright on rock and roll terra firma. And that’s exactly where you’re gonna find them in August, when their self-titled debut takes its bow. What can we say? The record is a hardcore, ass-shaking collection of adrenaline-fueled rockin’ and rollin’ that is destined to take its place among Drag City’s punk-est offerings. Such moments of inspiration and pure class are few and far between, so don’t miss ’em. Sign on — for Weird War.

POISED FOR A FALL
So that’s going to be happening in August. One tiny little release. Well, what do you want, world? Nobody wants us to try and sell them records in the summertime. That’s why we’ve come up with a plan. We’ll sell them in the fall, instead. On paper, it looks like a pretty good idea. And fortunately, it also looks good in practice as well. But then there’s reality — which says we've got an ever-lovin’ logjam of releases coming up around the bend this fall — so many releases, that it remains unclear how we’ll manage to get them all out. Take a look at some of these titles - Cynthia Dall Sound Restores Young Men, Mick Turner Moth, The Continental OP “Slitch Music”, Royal Trux Hand of Glory, Gregg Turkington and Brandan Kearney's Warm Voices Rearranged, Neil Hamburger Laugh Out Lord.

Now here’s the twist — one of these releases comes in DVD format. One of these releases is a book. And one was recorded all the way back in 1988! More word on which is which at the bottom of this page — and even more details on these choice titles as we enter into the month mysteriously known as August.

FUTURE DAZE
Also in the mist of the near future are a few blockbuster releases that are going to knock your socks off. They’ll probably happen in October or November, so write it down and get ready to start hassling us about all this. Who, pray tell are we talking about? Let’s see…there’s an all-new record from Bonnie ’Prince’ Billy. There’s the long-rumored Smog Singles collection. And there’s that elusive Kotche / O’Rourke / Tweedy record, tentatively dubbed Nuts. Isn't that enough for you people? We thought not. Join the queue anyway — we'll see you in the future.

THE TOUR PAGE
Don't forget to check out the details on the tour page before you exit this site! There's a bunch of live dates coming down during the dog days this summer, including some rare dates from Neil Hamburger, Chestnut Station, and Brother JT. Neil Michael Hagerty will be logging a few more dates before the end of this month as well. Then there's David Grubbs, whose dates will all be happening in that land down under, New Zealand. As well as some dates in Australia as well. Plus, if you live in NYC or Louisville Kentucky, then you're in luck! The Suntanama will be playing in both those towns this month. Well, don't look at me — go check the tour page!

TO BE OF JEWS
We're only humans running a record label. So what can we do to keep D.C. Berman out of hot water? The latest flap involves his letter to the editor of Nashville’s The Tennesean, 6/28/02, in which he offered an alternative reason as to why Charlie Daniels' controversial song "Another Fallen American Hero" was dropped from PBS programming on July 4th. Here's the letter in full:

To the Editor:

In the rush to adopt poses of indignation and fury over the removal of Charlie Daniel's song Another Fallen American Hero from PBS's July 4 programming, one thing's gone unmentioned: The song sucks.

With its schlocky arrangements and hamfisted lyrics, it's a remarkably bad all-around performance. I suspect someone at PBS was trying to let Charlie down easy by telling him that it was too ''angry'' to be included. Now he's gone and rationalized his song's rejection as some sort of bizarre insult to the memory of the victims of the World Trade Center bombing.

Talk about opportunism. Even Lee Greenwood wouldn't sink that low.

David Berman
Nashville 37212

Boy, the phone's been ringing off the hook since then. And nothing but boring old death threats. Those Charlie Daniels fans are really taking this seriously. Not to mention the Lee Greenwood fans. Surely there's got to be something better from Mr Silver Jews to do than bait of boatload of good old boys (and their women). Didn't Berman promise his fans another few new releases from Silver Jews before the end of the year? Hmph — perhaps he's going the long way round to get Mr. Daniels to produce him. Stranger things have happened. We'll let you know how this all plays out.

Well — that's pretty much it. But speaking of Silver Jews — on your way out, don’t forget to check on our ever-changing array of mail-order products — including the latest line in snappy T-shirt designs. Including, of course, the big news this month — the new, brown-on-aqua Silver Jews T, available in sizes ranging from extra-small to extra-fat. Buy one, and see how it feels.

We'll meet again —

Drag City
July 2002