by BBG

Torche at Webster Hall (more by Greg Cristman)

As previously predicted, Torche and Part Chimp are hitting the road in November in celebration of their upcoming 12" on Chunklet Records. The record has Torche covering three Guided by Voices songs and two new Part Chimp songs. Head over to Pitchfork to check out a stream of Torche's cover of "Exit Flagger". "Postal Blowfish" and "Unleashed! the Largehearted Boy" are the other two.

As previously mentioned, the tour hits Mercury Lounge in NYC on 9th. Tickets are on sale. These shows will reportedly be, like Guided By Voices before them, Part Chimp's final US appearances. All dates and some videos below...

Continue reading "Torche covers 3 GBV songs on split w/ their tour-mates Part Chimp (all dates announced)"

Yow and Sims of Scratch Acid,
on stage with The Jesus Lizard in 2009 (more by Timothy Griffin)

And the first U.S. Scratch Acid show has slipped out of the gate. The band will play the Variety Playhouse in Atlanta on November 1st. David Wm. Sims (also of The Jesus Lizard) previously announced that the band would do a string of US dates in November and December to accompany their UK ATP appearance, so look for those shows to appear soon.

Speaking of Atlanta, they've got it good because that's also where the still-reunited Man or Astro-Man? are playing this Wednesday night (8/31). The show at the Earl, presented by Chunklet, is still on sale. It's also one of 10 scheduled dates for the Alabama band, October 15th in Athens, GA included. They are all listed below (no NY).

Speaking of Chunklet and Jesus Lizard...

Chunklet is beyond thrilled to announce the release of "The Jesus Lizard: CLUB" on 2xLP gatefold for worldwide distribution on December 6, 2011.

This is the vinyl soundtrack to the DVD which came out in September. "CLUB" is the definitive document of the The Jesus Lizard reunited for their first American performance in over a decade at the Exit/In in Nashville in 2009.

It was a tour that was heralded the world over, with stops at festivals and clubs all over the world. Sasha Frere-Jones, writing for The New Yorker: "It may have been the only reunion show I've ever seen where I forgot almost immediately that the band hadn't played together in more than a decade."

Featuring the entire evening's performance, "The Jesus Lizard: CLUB" goes inside a fan-favorite set list of an incendiary performance from one of the greatest bands of the modern era. "CLUB" is being released as a double-LP in a gatefold jacket. A one time edition of 1,000 copies. Mail-order copies (ltd to 200) available on colored vinyl.

And for something Jesus Lizard related in NYC right now, check out David Yow's art exhibit, showing now at Fuse Gallery.

Man or Astro-Man? dates below...

Continue reading "Scratch Acid schedule GA show, Man or Astro-Man? playing shows, Chunklet releasing Jesus Lizard 2xLP"

by BBG

Floor at Red 7 for the BrooklynVegan Fun Fun Fun Fest After-Party

Robotic Empire dropped the exhaustive Floor box set earlier this year and now Chunklet will release a Floor DVD entitled Sight & Seen, a two disc compilation on the mighty Floridian band that spawned also-greats Torche and Dove. The DVD includes multi-angle video from both Floor renunion shows at The Earl in Atlanta (pictures here) as the centerpiece, the set also includes a featurette on the band with more live footage and interviews, audio from both shows, and older video that spans Floor's original run. If it's anything like the Harvey Milk Anthem DVD, you'll want to get your hands on it... Get your copy via Chunklet, but hurry; only 700 will be released in varying colorways. Look for it the first week of December 2010.

Not-surprise guest Floor headlined the BrooklynVegan FFF Fest afterparty at Red 7 in Austin on Sunday (11/7) alongside Landmine Marathon, Mammoth Grinder, and Ratking.

After a long day of incredible performances Sunday at Fun Fun Fun Fest (pictures are on the way), I was a bit worn out (not just from the day, but from Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday too). But the energetic performances from all bands- Ratking is brutal crusty noise/hardcore featuring Coop from Made out of Babies, Mammoth Grinder is a personal fave, and Landmine Marathon was especially great with their new drummer- got my heart racing. Even though I caught Floor earlier that day at the fest, I enjoyed them much more as my final band of the Fun Fun Fun trek.... just incredible. Thanks to Transmission and all that filled Red 7!

More pictures from Red 7, and the Sight & Seen trailer, are below...

Continue reading "Floor played Red 7 w/ Landmine Marathon, Mammoth Grinder & Ratking (pics), releasing DVD (trailer)"

Henry Owings sending you a subliminal message

Chunklet's proud to present its third book and first that is being self-published. Written by the collective staff at Chunklet Magazine (http://www.chunklet.com/) and edited by its founder, Henry Owings, "The Indie Cred Test" is a broadly written and obsessively crafted multi-faceted standardized exam to pick apart the reader and underground culture in general. What's cool? What's not? Did you pass? Does it matter? Of course! You need to maintain your cred to preserve....well, your cred!

Individual exams dissect the readers book shelves along with their DVD and record collection. It's not just about the test subject's lifestyle, it's about where they work, who they know, how they spend their free time, what they put in their body, on their body and who they surround themselves with. Indie cred is serious business. And by "serious" we mean, of course, it's "subject to ridicule" the way only Chunklet can serve it -- over ice...with a tongue planted in cheek. Or is it?"

Henry Owings needs money, not to keep Chunklet afloat, but to get the above-described book published. Click that link to get to the Kickstarter page where you can find out more info and donate.

And speaking of indie cred and needing money, it definitely annoyed a lot of people when Paste Magazine started a big campaign a while back to collect money to keep their magazine afloat. Regardless of your opinion of Paste, it worked. They apparently collected a buttload of money, though it apparently wasn't enough because today it was leaked that they're going under anyway.

Someone who is probably celebrating Paste's downfall right now is fellow Southerner Henry Owings who has gone on record with his hatred for Paste, and especially their little campaign to save themselves (which I guess is slightly ironic in the context of this post, though that wasn't my original intent). Read Henry's rant against Paste, below...

Continue reading "Chunklet probably happy about Paste, need $$ for indie cred"

Best Coast @ Knitting Factory in April (more by Dominick Mastrangelo)

Greetings from Toronto. NXNE, the Toronto music/film/interactive fest is happening this week. It kicked off its music programming last night, Wednesday, June 16th, and runs through Sunday with shows at 50+ venues (here's a map of the spots). The festival also coincides with the now-affliated Broken Social Scene-helmed Toronto Island concert that features Pavement, Band of Horses, Beach House and others on Saturday, June 19th.

There weren't many Wednesday night shows. The official kick off party was just Eagles of Death Metal (sadly, without their normal bass player) at The Phoenix. And there was a gig or two with Canada's Hollerado (who have at least six shows at the fest lined up). One of them was up in the CN Tower.Still Life Still played the Mod Club with Denmark's The Blue Van.

One of the main hubs will be the free-to-anyone outdoor stage at Yonge-Dundas Square with headliners Thursday night X and Mudhoney, Friday night Sloan and k-os, Saturday night Iggy and the Stooges preceded by The Raveonettes, Wavves, Surfer Blood and others, and Sunday's De La Soul, Kid Sister, Phenomenal Handclap Band and NOLA rapper Big Freedia.

continued below...

Continue reading "NXNE is underway in Toronto -- a quick guide to the music "

Jerry Fuchs

"As the new millennium started gearing up, there was a obvious reason why Jerry started playing with all the DFA-affiliated bands (The Juan Maclean, !!!, etc.) as time went on: He was an invaluable monster on the drums that could recreate those motorik-like disco beats and make it sound human. Goddamn, the hair on the back of my neck stands on end when I think about it. Recent years saw him reaffirm his roots in Athens as he became the incredibly propulsive backbone to Maserati after they gave their original drummer the boot. And man, again, watching Jerry perform was always a treat. ALWAYS." [Chunklet]

It's been a week since the tragic death of Jerry Fuchs. A memorial service was held at Enids in Brooklyn on Thursday. The loft building he died in, 338 Berry Street, is going about business as usual. There are many Craigslist ads for spaces there. All of them mention the freight elevator as an amenity. This is the picture of the building from one of the ads:

338 Berry

What was Jerry doing at 338 Berry at the night in question? Well, this "AccesSoiree" benefit party was happening there...

The party advertised that there would be "DJ sets by fashion darling Judi Rosen, The Juan MacLean's Nancy Wang and more from New York's finest DFA crew to name but a few". The above-quoted Chunklet obit is one of the nicest I've seen, and as it reiterates, Jerry was a large part of DFA. Chk Chk Chk wrote this on their MySpace...

thanks to everyone who has contacted us with their love and support. we could never put into words how special a person jerry was and how much we loved him. we ask that you tell all the people you care about and are thankful for that you love them. we wish we still had jerry.

A member of Hot Chip got this new Jerry Fuchs memorial tattoo...

The first Juan Maclean video below (with a fake fight) explains the midi tattoo. The other video features a 16 minute live version of "Happy House" with Jerry behind the kit. Juan is DJing a benefit in San Francisco on November 20th. More details about that and both videos below...

Continue reading "remembering Jerry Fuchs (338 Berry, Chunklet, !!!, Hot Chip, Juan Maclean, a tattoo & a benefit in San Francisco) "

by Black Bubblegum

DOWNLOAD: Doomriders - "Lions" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Portal - "Omenknow" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Javelina - "Step Child" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Karma To Burn - Live at Lit Lounge 4/20/09 (Zipped MP3)
DOWNLOAD: 20 Buck Spin Label Sampler (Mediafire, Zipped MP3 via)
DOWNLOAD: Kowloon Walled City - Gambling On The Richter Scale (Zipped MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Converge - "Axe To Fall" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Power Pellut - "Black Molly" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Black Skies - "Smoke and Mirrors" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Yoga - "Seventh Wind" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Sleep - Live at ATP 5/9/09 (MP3)

Javelina @ the Northside BV-BBG Showcase (more by Jason Walker)

Alright! I get it. Doomriders rules. Revocation is up there. There's a new Converge and Baroness on the way. But even with all of those great releases, it suprises me that Javelina isn't near some of the top of those lists. The band's filthy debut was a monster and their new one, Beasts Among Sheep, only adds to their considerable reputation. If you are a fan of the last LP, this one is a must have. Dig on "Stepchild" above and preorder the limited edition LP version of Javelina's Beasts Among Sheep via Brutal Panda Records and the CD version via Translation Loss.

Speaking of that Doomriders album, Darkness Come Alive is out NOW via Deathwish Records. Though the party vibe that permeated through Black Thunder is mostly gone, it has been replaced by a propulsive punk rock fury and, at times, a Misfits-era Danzig croon (see "Come Alive")! There are quite a few killer moments on this long-player, but we present to you the most "fuck you" of them all, the galloping "Lions" downloadable above!

In our last round up, we shined a light on into the deepest fathoms of Australia and the truly frightening Portal. The band's claustrophobic and positively frightening new death metal LP, Swarth, relies as much on freak-out atmosphere as it does killer discordant riffery. Swarth is due out on 10/20 via Profound Lore and we have a second taste in the form of "Omenknow" above.
Misery Index have completed four new songs and are looking to enter the studio in early 2010 to record their follow up to Traitors! Stoked.

Iron Age @ Cake Shop (more by Jason Walker)

I still remember that kick ass Cake Shop show with Iron Age, Mind Eraser, and Sex Vid, and walking out of that show wanting more. Thankfully, I can add to those great memories with a PAIR of Iron Age shows in the coming weeks! First up, the rowdy Texans will team up with the great Mother of Mercy (profiled here) for a show at Cake Shop (10/16). The next day (10/17), look for the band to pull a double header with a day show at Generation Records and a night show at The Charleston with Brain Killer, Naam & Descender. Speaking of Mind Eraser, the band will team up with the kick ass Iron Lung for a string of east coast dates which will include Cake Shop on 11/8! Full Iron Age and Iron Lung dates are below.

Black Skies will release the limited edition vinyl from their 2008 EP Hexagon on I'm Better Than Everyone Else Records. The Chapel Hill doom trio is currently on the hunt for drummer #5, but not before blessing us with some seriously killer riffage in the form of "Smoke & Mirrors" above. Preorder Hexagon here.

Power Pellut is also releasing their debut LP via I'm Better than Everyone Else Records. Preorder that here and dig on "Black Betty" from that LP above!

Church of Misery will release a live record culled from their recent set at Roadburn 2009! More details are to come, but look for Burning World to do the honors in November/December of this year. In the meantime, dig on this killer live video from Roadburn 2009!

That video, news on Kowloon Walled City, Boris, Asphyx, Struck By Lightning, Ringworm, Repulsion and more!

Continue reading "This Week In METAL (09/30/09)"

by Klaus Kinski (of Klaus Kinski's Comedy Canon)

Two films I've been dying to see quickly made their way in and out of our fair city this past June. Being an idiot that cannot seem to prioritize anything, I missed them both. The films I speak of are Big Fan starring Patton Oswalt and Visioneers starring Zach Galifianakis. You may recall from previous articles that Zach and Patton are among my favorite comedians of all time; thus the eagerness to see these films and the anguish at missing them. Big Fan is the directorial debut of Robert Siegel, the man wrote The Wrestler, a film that featured comedian Todd Barry (another favorite). In Big Fan, Patton plays the role of Paul.

Paul is a 35-year-old toll booth operator from Staten Island who lives and dies by his New York Giants. When he has a chance encounter with Giants linebacker Quantrell Bishop, however, things go horribly wrong and a brutal beating at the hands of his idol tests Paul's allegiance to the team. Comedian Patton Oswalt delivers a heartbreaking, layered performance in this pitch-black comedy that reveals the disturbing side of obsessive fandom.

Thankfully, word is out that Big Fan will begin showing in theaters in New York and Philadelphia August 28th, Los Angeles, D.C, Dallas and Houston theatres September 11th and then expanding! In the meantime, visit the official website for trailers and whatnot. And definitely check out Patton's diaries from when Big Fan played at Sundance back in January. Trailer below.

Having seen the trailer last year, I feel like Visioneers has been on my radar for a really long time. It definitely looks to be a somber, Orwellian, supremely dark comedy. The film, directed by Jared Drake, stars Galifianakis as George Washington Winsterhammerman.

George lives a comfortable yet completely uneventful life, and when he starts having dreams in which he's the first President of the United States, his doctor informs him that they could be signs of impending explosion. Later, as the dreams become more frequent and his co-workers continue to detonate, George is prompted to reevaluate his mundane existence.

It looks like that June 3 screening at the 92Y Tribeca may have been my only opportunity to see it theatrically; it comes out on DVD July 21st (using Zach's role in The Hangover to reach a broader audience) and there only seems to be independently organized screening parties scattered across the US. Trailer below.

Zach did a split 7" with Ted Leo a while back, available only via Chunklet.com and only available if you purchased another item from the Chunklet store. Now you no longer need to buy a second item in order to purchase the record. This extremely limited edition 7" is only $5 and is available on four different types of wax. Get 'em while they're hot!.

In Other News........

Continue reading "comedy news: Patton Oswalt, David Cross, Zach Galifianakis, Ricky Gervais, M Showalter, ATP & more (by Klaus Kinski)"

by Klaus Kinski

When it rains it pours, and by golly there's a freakin' monsoon happening over at good ole' Chunklet right now. Where to begin.... Well, first off, Chunklet's milestone 20th Issue is done, printed, and on a pallet bound for Chunklet HQ any second now. It's been three years in the making, but this sucker looks well worth the wait. Readers are greeted by another amazing cover designed by Chris Bilheimer who's done the last 9 covers and who, incidentally, is REM's art director. Inside?

.... it promises to be the most brutal issue yet. Featuring interviews with Paul F. Tompkins, Zach Galifianakis, Jon Glaser and Sublime Frequencies. There are also features involving Whirlyball with Arcade Fire, The Shins, Queens of the Stone Age, Black Lips, Deerhunter, Death Cab for Cutie, Mogwai and countless others. Features also on music journalists, drug appreciation, good guys/bad bands and the usual array of Chunklet insanity (or inanity depending on your outlook).

And not only is Issue #20 about to hit the streets, but so is a Chunklet limited edition 7" that is sure to become a classic. For Side A, Zach Galifianakis joined up with comedian AD Miles, record producer Jon Brion and Fiona Apple to record the ultra-danceable track "Up In Them Guts". Side B features a studio version of the classic Scharpling and Wurster anthem "Rock'n'Roll Dreams'll Come Through" performed by Ted Leo and The Pharmacists. You can get this bad boy as a picture disc, yellow vinyl, or black vinyl and is only available if you purchase something else from the Chunklet store.

You can hear the original, classic Scharpling and Wurster WFMU version on the CD New Hope for the Ape-Eared. A while back Ted Leo did his own version of this tune on the Tom's show. You can hear that version, set to fan made animation, below. This is also not the first time Fiona and Zach have worked together.

Speaking of Ted Leo, did you know that Ted Leo and the Pharmacists put out a downloadable 4-song EP via Touch and Go Records for charity? It's true. The EP costs $4 and all proceeds go to Democracy Now and Minneapolis Food Not Bombs. Ted has a pretty long and engaging explanation about why he did this and you can read that here.

I am also happy to report that Chunklet is celebrating its 15 Year Anniversary! And what better way to celebrate the life and times of this most iconic music and comedy rag than with some supremely ballsy shows at the 40 Watt in Athens, GA. On October 10th Chunklet has lined up Deerhunter, Twin Tigers, Gentleman Jesse & His Men with comedian Brent Weinbach (TIX). Then on October 11th thrill to the majesty of Mastodon, Brian Posehn, It's Casual, and Brent Weinbach (TIX). That Posehn/Mastodon/Weinbach show is like a dream. I am jealous. That should be a national tour.

And last, but absolutely positively not least, I am thrilled to report that The Rock Bible IS AVAILABLE. Penned by Chunklet founder, DJ, promoter, record producer, tour manager, booking agent, cool dude Henry Owings this 144 page masterpiece is basically a rulebook full of dos and don'ts for musicians, wannabe musicians, and rock fans of all ages. And if there's one person I trust to write a book of this nature, it's Henry. Get it on the cheap here and here.

More pictures of this stuff and video below...

Continue reading "2 new Ted Leo releases, a new Fiona Apple/Galifianakis collaboration, Mastodon & other Chunklet news"