by BBG

Aaron Kenyon with a current project, Djam Karet

Aaron Kenyon, a founding member of Man is The Bastard, has weighed in on the controversial appropriation of the iconic skull logo by Akron/Family, and his views differ from that of his ex-bandmates. Check out Kenyon's statement below.

If you missed it, Man is the Bastard member Eric Wood initially made his thoughts known via Facebook which in turn led to ex-member Israel Lawrence weighing in and a public response from Akron/Family as well.

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In semi-related news, Disney will no longer carry a highly-controversial t-shirt that molds the iconic Joy Division Unknown Pleasures album cover into a Mickey Mouse silhouette. Band members fell on both sides of the fence on this issue, with Peter Hook commenting to the LA Times that it was "flattering" and drummer Stephen Morris commenting that it was "horrible" and he was "quite angry".

Aaron Kenyon's statement on Man in the Bastard, below..

Continue reading "today in shirts: Disney stops carrying Joy Division design; another ex-Man is The Bastard member weighs in on Akron/Family issue"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: Howler - I Told You Once (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Fujiya & Miyagi - Ecstatic Dancer (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Dinowalrus - What Now (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Pre War - Out There (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Royal Baths - Darling Divine (MP3)

Howler

Welcome to the Stop SOPA edition of TWII. Do you know how hard it would be to do this column without free knowledge via the internet? It would be riddled with factual errors. More so!

Minneapolis underage upstarts Howler are in town playing a whole bunch of shows. The onslaught began last night with an in-store at Other Music (their album came out yesterday), and continues with: an early show tonight (January 18) with Happy People andTiberius,  January 19 at Death By Audio with Grooms andClouder, January 20 at Cameo Gallery with St. Lucia, and January 21 at Pianos with Dear Lions, Cemeteries, and The Everymen.

As mentioned, Howler's debut album came out yesterday and is titled America Give Up which kind of feels like a "just try not to like us" dare. Their sound -- a little Strokes, a little Jesus and Mary Chain, a little West Coast garage -- is indeed easy to like, even if there isn't much "new" about it. But the band have no shortage of hooks and a good dose of hard-to-fake attitude. As previously mentioned, ou can stream the whole thing at NPR.

Most of the hype is coming from the UK press who are still enamored with the Vaccines (with whom Howler's toured). I like Howler better than them and am going to make an effort to catch one of their shows this week. You should too, surely you've got one night free this week?

Fujiya & Miyagi

Also in town this week are Fugiya & Miyagi, playing Glasslands on Thursday (1/19) and Mercury Lounge on Saturday (1/21, sold out). The band have a new single out, "Ecstatic Dancer," that you can download at the top of this post. It's the kind of slinky, glammy stomper you could imagine Goldfrapp doing but with David Best's whispery vocals. No album attached to it as far as I can tell so it seems the single supports the tour, not the other way around as usual.

The band are also on the Power, Corruption & Lies Covered CD that comes with the February issue of MOJO, where the entirety of cover stars New Order's second album is covered by the likes of Destroyer, S.C.U.M. and Errors. Fujiya & Miyagi contribute a fairly wrote version of Side Two opener "Your Silent Face." (Stream it below.) The band are a good time live and are equally adept at both Neu!-style motorik and funky Can rhythms as you may already know. My favorite song is still "Ankle Injuries" but I'm looking forward to seeing them tomorrow.

Thursday's Glasslands show is with Zambri, who really impressed me at Glasslands last month, Rarechild and The Golden Filter on DJ duties. For Saturday's show at Merc, openers are Aimes, Jangulaand Dinowalrus.

Dinowalrus

Dinowalrus' second album, Best Behavior, is due out March 6 on Old Flame records. If you haven't seen them in a while, the band dropped the dissonance in favor of a sound under the influenced of late '80s Manchester. While that means some danceable tracks, it also means atmospheric rockers like "What Now" which veers closer to The Chameleons or The Sound. You can download it at the top of this post.

Jonathan Wilson

If you're looking for something a little more mellow, man, perhaps you should check out onetime Eisley bassist Jonathan Wilson who is here for three shows this week. He's at Mercury Lounge tomorrow (1/19) for an early show and again  on Friday (1/20) for a late show with Quilt), and then hits the Rock Shop on Saturday (1/ 21).

Jonathan Wilson's Gentle Spirit made its way onto many Best of 2011 lists, coming in at #4 on MOJO's year end coverage. Pazz n' Jop notsomuch, only three votes, which landed it in a 21-way tie for #372. Mind you, Wilson's music -- which recalls the heyday of early '70s Laurel Canyon -- is prime fodder for a magazine like MOJO that has a Beatle on the cover at least once a year, but Gentle Spirit is a genuinely gorgeous album that exudes a West Coast vibe even in the coldest New York winter. Spotify users can listen to the album here.

This is the only picture on Pre War's Facebook

And finally, for many in New York the phrase "pre war" is code for "not many electric outlets and no sink in the bathroom" but maybe that will change with Pre War the rock band who have dusted themselves off from the recently defunct Conversion Party. Like that band, Pre War traffic in catchy, big-chorused indie rock. Check out "Out There" at the top of this post and you can listen to more at the band's Tumblr.

You can catch Pre War live Thursday (1/19) at Cake Shop where they play with Grand Rapids, Plates of Cake, and Hunny.

That's the big stuff for this week. Day-by-day picks not covered above are below. Fight the power!

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WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 18

Sharon Van Etten is at Mercury Lounge which if you don't have tickets, is sold out. She's got lots more shows coming up, though. Her new album, Tramp, is really good.

continued below...

Continue reading "Howler, Fujiya & Miyagi, Dinowalrus, Pre War, Jonathan Wilson, Royal Baths & more in This Week in Indie"

by BBG

1/4 of Joy Division (aka Peter Hook) performing as Joy Division in Brest, 9th March 2011

"I first heard about this on Monday and it has taken me completely by surprise! Everyone knows that NEW ORDER without PETER HOOK is like QUEEN without FREDDIE MERCURY, U2 without THE EDGE, SOOTY without SWEEP!

On a more serious note, I do not understand the decision THE OTHER THREE have taken. I wish they had approached me first. I do not agree with the methods they have used and feel it would have been courteous and professional to have spoken to me in advance of the announcements. It is very sad.

Love PETER HOOK x Sept 2011

Maybe Peter Hook will comment on it on Tuesday (9/13) at Gramercy Theater as part of his tour playing songs by Joy Division. (irony?)

by Bill Pearis

Despite a general consensus that it's a not the greatest idea or use of his time, Peter Hook and his current band The Light continue to tour the Joy Division catalogue and will be in New York next Tuesday (9/13) for a show at Gramercy Theatre, a show that was originally supposed to be at Irving Plaza. Where last year's tour concentrated on Unknown Pleasures, this time the focus will be on Joy Division's second, final album, Closer. Some dates on this tour will still get Unknown Pleasures, though, and all tour dates are below indicating which album Peter Hook & the Light will be performing.

Back in May, Peter Hook & the Light released an EP of new versions Joy Division songs, including the unrecorded "Pictures in My Mind" plus three other songs with lead vocals by Rowetta who sang with Happy Mondays in the '90s and later placed fourth on the first UK season of Simon Cowell's X Factor. Videos for The Light's versions of "Atmosphere" (with Rowetta) and "Pictures in My Mind" (with Hook taking lead vocals) are at the bottom of this post.

Meanwhile, the rest of New Order are reuniting without Peter Hook, and that includes keyboardist/guitarist Gillian Gilbert who hasn't played with the band since the '90s. Gilbert was a part of the recording of 2001's Get Ready but bowed out of touring to take care of her and husband (and New Order drummer) Stephen Morris' daughter. Replacing Hook will be Tom Chapman, who plays in Bernard Summner's Bad Lieutenant. I wonder how low he slings his bass? This version of New Order play October 17 at Ancienne Belgique in Brussels and October 18 at La Bataclan in Paris and both shows are benefits for ailing friend of the band Michael Shamburg who produced many of the band's '80s videos. Maybe they'll stick to songs from 1992's Republic which doesn't features much of Hook's signature bass style.

Speaking of Gilbert, she and Morris (who made records as The Other Two in the early '90s) have released a new EP, Swing, under the name Gillian and Stephen on their own Hard Cheese label, consisting of house-y instrumentals originally conceived and written as a soundtrack to Anna Blessman & Peter Saville's exhibition between October 2010 and January 2011 at the Gallerie Frac Champagne-Ardenne in France. Saville designed the sleeve.

You can stream a track off the Swing EP at the bottom of this post, which is also where you can find those Peter Hook & the Light videos and tour dates.

Continue reading "Peter Hook 'Closer' show moved to Gramercy (updated dates), the rest of New Order reuniting for charity"

Much to the displeasure of many, Peter Hook and his band The Light performed Joy Division's Unknown Pleasures on tour last year. This year, they'll do the same with Closer, though they will still perform Unknown Pleasures in select locations. The North American tour kicks off in September and hits NYC on September 13 at Irving Plaza, where they will play Closer. Tickets for that show go on sale Friday (7/8) at noon. All dates are listed below.

In May, Peter Hook and the Light released their debut EP 1102/2011 on Hacienda records. The EP features three Joy Division tracks with lead vocals by The Light member Rowetta, who Hook first collaborated with when she recorded vocals for his other band Freebass. The fourth and last song on the EP is an unfinished Joy Division track, "Pictures In My Mind," with lead vocals performed by Hook. You can purchase a download of the EP here

Check out the video for "Pictures In My Mind" below along the EP album art, tracklist, and all tour dates....

Continue reading "now Peter Hook is performing 'Closer' on tour, released an EP of new/redone Joy Division songs (dates)"

Peter Hook @ the Philly show on 12/2/10 (King Taco)

As a tour repeatedly billed as "Peter Hook Presents Unknown Pleasures," it wholly delivered on the premise.

The New Order track-free set featured note-nailing impressions of Joy Division's "No Love Lost," "Leaders of Men," "Glass," and "Digital," before covering their most famous LP from front to back. All the pleasures you'd expect of Pleasures were present -- the punchy, sumptuous intro of "New Dawn Fades," guitars searing during "Shadowplay," the jagged moves of "She's Lost Control." More fleshed out than the record, even.

Hook couldn't quite mimic Curtis' authoritative vocals, but his calls were crisp and competently matched each song's tone. He particularly savored the big repeated yells that close so many Joy Division songs. They show his animated side just waiting to break out.

"Transmission" was feisty, too, which is to be expected, but then the band filled "Love Will Tear Us Apart" with an ecstatic thunder the original never touched.

Hook warmly said, "Thank you and good night. God bless you all," before the whole gang left for good, removing any doubt that he shouldn't be taking this material on. Appearances from Sumner and Morris would have been nice, yes, but no cash-in would have been so devoted to its source material. Hook didn't try to be Curtis, which was the best path he could take. -[Spin]

That glowing review (?!?) comes from the 12/1 Peter Hook & The Light show at 9:30 Club in DC, part of the same Unknown Pleasures tour that hit Webster Hall two days later (12/3), and Boston the night after that. Was it actually that good? The eight-date tour continues in Portland tonight (12/9), and ends at Mezzanine in San Francisco on 12/10.

As Vice points out in a post entitled "SOMEONE STOP PETER HOOK" (a more popular opinion than SPIN's), a crowd member handled the vocals on "Ceremony" in Boston. Even worse, according to "Fuc 51" on Twitter, "Hook announced he had been paid $10,000" by the guy. We haven't fact checked the money transaction, but you can watch a video of the number, along with some videos from Webster Hall, below...

Continue reading "Peter Hook's 'Unknown Pleasures' tour continues (played Webster Hall & with a fan in Boston)"

by Bill Pearis

Bad Lieutenant, the band Bernard Sumner formed after New Order officially split three years ago, will make their New York debut at Webster Hall on November 21 -- tickets are on American Express pre-sale Wednesday, with general sale starting Friday (10/9). And according to Sumner in a Rolling Stone interview, Bad Lieutenant will also open for all four of Pixies' Doolittle shows at Hammerstein Ballroom that same week, though there has yet to be any official confirmation.

The band's debut album, Never Cry Another Tear, is out this week digitally and will be available in physical form next week. The line-up includes guitarists Phil Cunningham, who replaced founding member Gillian Gilbert in 2001, and Jake Evans who sings lead on a few of Never Cry Another Tear's songs. Live, Bad Lieutenant also features New Order drummer Stephen Morris, with Thom Chapman on bass. Sumner talked to Pitchfork about the new group:

Continue reading "Bad Lieutenant (Bernard Sumner) playing Joy Division, New Order & other songs @ Webster Hall & at all 4 Pixies shows?"

by Black Bubblegum

Blur @ Rough Trade East

What happens when you take a recently disassembled New Order, subtract one, and add in a partial Blur. Apparently, you get an Abel Ferrara film starring Harvey Keitel. Confused?

Frontman Bernard Sumner, drummer Stephen Morris and guitarist Phil Cunningham have joined with Blur's Alex James for Bad Lieutenant's debut album, due in October. "I'm very proud of it, it's a very good album," Sumner told the BBC. "It's pretty guitary too because we've got three guitarists in the band." There may yet be more guitarists added - Sumner has promised that other Manchester musicians are to join the "collective" on tour. -[The Guardian]

Meanwhile Alex James's other gig, Blur, is officially BACK, and they played a pair of reunion gigs in the UK over the past few days including a "friends and family show" in Essex and last night (6/15) at Rough Trade East:

Around 10:42, Graham Coxon's Twitter page gave the game away, rallying the troops to Brixton Academy for eighteen minutes later. A mad dash over the river, through the market and into the unnervingly miniscule queue ensued and fifteen minutes later, wrists were endowed with shining green/ gold dust wristbands emblazoned with the band's now iconic freeform font. All that was left to do was wait.... Until eventually, ...phones and electronic inboxes alike were bombarded with conclusive info as to the wheres and then the whens; Rough Trade East, on stage at 7pm sharp, no arrivals before half six for fear of jeopardising the whole shebang.

...Rough Trade is transformed into the best garage gig never to entail smashed windscreens as involuntary feedback rasps through the murky humidity of an Amazonian rainforest. Invigorating, inspiring and utterly unmissable, the reunion never sounded so victorious. - [Virgin Blog]

Blur's Midlife: a Beginner's Guide To Blur is out now in the UK and due on July 28th domestically. No word on if the band will play on US soil to promote the release.

The recent shows in the UK are only a handful of their upcoming festival-heavy schedule. Check that out, as well as setlists from both nights and video from last night, below...

Continue reading "Blur played some shows (setlists, video, more dates) + Alex James & most of New Order form Bad Lieutenant "

Thumbs Down (CRED)

"On January 2, 2008, TBD Records/ATO Records Group will release in North America the physical version of Radiohead's In Rainbows." XL will release it on December 31st in Europe.

Also...
* Dispute surrounds Radiohead numbers
* Hostess to release ‘In Rainbows’ in Japan
* David Byrne interviews Thom Yorke for WIRED
* Adam Buxton reveals all on Radiohead webcast
* The Radiohead Bjork song & other MP3s from the webcasts
* Radiohead telecast videos, Bjork cover, & stuff

More videos from the webcast below....

Continue reading "In Rainbows US release, David Byrne, Adam Buxton, Radiohead"

As you know, Erasure are part of the True Colors tour. That gets them to Radio City Music Hall in NYC on June 18th. Ends up they'll be back in the area soon afterwards too - to play outside at McCarren Pool in Brooklyn on August 3rd (thx Mark).

In other (related?) news, (and as also reported a minute ago), New Order have called it quits.

i suppose it was the interview with clint boon that started it all off hed asked me for a few words on perry farrells satellite party single dogstar [which he thought was great] so i went on and lo and behold mentioned the N>O> split so i suppose because it was me sayin it it was out at last. im relieved really hated carryin on as normal with an awful secret so lets move on shall we? played the openin of rios in leeds on friday great crowd and considerin theyd been through 5 local bands already had an amazin resilience/ some kid came up and gave me a hug and said "sorry to hear about new order hooky" i was really touched its like your budgie dyin! great drive back [dont tell the rozzers] 47mins beat that! [Peter Hook]

All tour dates below....

Continue reading "ERASURE - 2007 Tour Dates (Radio City & McCarren Pool) ++ NEW ORDER breaks up"