by Andrew Frisicano

DOWNLOAD: Man or Astro-man? - Junk Satellite (MP3)

The first time I saw Man or Astroman? was in April of 1997, in a small bar in Tempe, Arizona. This was five years after the band had originally started playing, conquering stages across the world with their unique blend of punk, electronica and surf music. After a solid two-hour set and a double encore, the band capped off the evening by setting off a Tesla coil in the middle of the stage, sending thick, purple lightning through the club. As impressive (and frightening) as the light show was, the power surge melted part of the venue's electronics and blacked-out parts of suburban Phoenix for the better part of three days (this due to the clubs proximity to a power substation). This was how music was supposed to sound - not like that damn Dave Matthews or whatever the hell else was playing on the rock station back then. [Slug Magazine]

One of their previous reunions was at Touch & Go Records' 25th Anniversary celebration in Chicago September 2006. The label put out a good portion of the band's extensive catalog, including 1997's Made from Technetium, which features the song posted above. Videos of the often-costume-clad band and their impressive chops are below...

Continue reading "Man or Astro-man? surfacing to play SXSW & Alabama"

Ellis since 1996 has been a member of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Ellis and Turner have both released solo albums. In addition, Turner and White have released several EPs as The Tren Brothers, and appear as backing musicians on albums by Cat Power, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy and PJ Harvey (White drums). Turner is also an internationally exhibited painter with his own work gracing the covers of all of their major albums except Sad & Dangerous. He also runs the band's own record label Anchor & Hope. In 1999, Dirty Three with Low recorded an In the Fishtank session for Konkurrent records.

Dirty Three have released albums on Touch & Go Records and have toured with Sonic Youth, Pavement, Throwing Muses, Cat Power, PJ Harvey, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, Devendra Banhart and Shannon Wright to name just a few.

The NYC gig comes two days after the group's appearence at ATP NY, where they'll perform their album Ocean Songs in full. Also at that festival are the reunited Jesus Lizard who also just announced a NYC show or two of their own.

All tour dates, below...

Continue reading "Dirty Three - 2009 tour dates (Bowery Ballroom & ATP NY) "

The Jesus Lizard @ the primavera festival - May 2009 (Miss Rosa)

"Touch & Go Records is going to reissue the Pure EP and the albums Head, Goat, Liar, and Down on September 22, 2009. These records have been remastered and sound noticeably better than the original releases. All of the albums will include songs from the 7' singles and other rarities as bonus tracks." [David Wm. Sims]

The NYC shows are November 16th and 17th at Irving Plaza. Tickets for the first one go on sale Friday, June 19th, at noon. The second is isn't listed at Live Nation yet. The Jesus Lizard are also playing the 9:30 Club in DC on November 19th. All dates and reissue track lists, below...

Continue reading "The Jesus Lizard - reissues & 2009 tour dates (2 NYC shows!)"

by Andrew Frisicano

Enon?

In summer 2008, drummer Matt Schulz announced that he would be leaving Enon to pursue other interests. Afterwards he joined Holy Fuck as a touring member. Enon will tour for the remainder of 2008 and into 2009 with a replacement drummer before Schulz's replacement will be announced in early 2009. [Wikipedia]

These Are Powers also played the Bell House on January 23rd - one of the band's many 2009 shows. Check out their new video for song "Blue Healer," below.

Holy Fuck, mentioned above, is soon to be on tour, with two May NYC dates, both with A Place To Bury Strangers.

Enon's last record was 2007's Grass Geysers...Carbon Clouds, on Touch & Go. That label, recently downsized, is home to Slint and Dead Child - two bands that feature guitarist/multi-instrumentalist David Pajo, who announced in March on his Myspace that he "just started playing with the YEAH YEAH YEAHS and will be jamming with them on their their upcoming tour." He's currently tweeting about the band's London rehearsals. YYYs perform on SNL this Saturday (4/11).

Crystal Antlers' full-length Tentacles came out on Touch & Go on April 7th, and they just released a new video for their song "Andrew." Touch & Go writes, "The video was directed by Michael Reich of Videothing.com and will tie-in to a feature film that the band will be releasing later this year." Check it out below. Crystal Antlers is currently on tour, with its own pair of NYC dates coming up in May (one of which is at the Bell House).

Enon tour dates (with Bell House flyer) and These Are Powers and Crystal Antlers videos below...

Continue reading "Enon playing Brooklyn (tonight), David Pajo playing w/ Yeah Yeah Yeahs (on tour), the new Crystal Antlers video"

by Andrew Frisicano

DOWNLOAD: Crystal Antlers- Andrew (MP3)

Crystal Antlers @ Pianos BV CMJ Day Party (more by Leia Jospe)

Crystal Antlers have big tour plans in support of their debut full-length Tentacles, which came out March 3rd on iTunes and will come out April 7th on CD and LP on Touch & Go.

The band visits SXSW this week, with multiple appearances including an official showcase on Friday at Flaming Cantina, and the free day-fest Mess With Texas on Saturday (with The Black Lips, Cursive, Monotonix, The Thermals, Akron/Family, Vivian Girls, Crystal Antlers, Abe Vigoda, and more). From there, they'll tour North America through April (with a small break), ending in two NYC dates: The Bell House in Brooklyn on May 11th (no tickets yet) and Mercury Lounge on May 12th (on sale Tuesday at noon). UK dates in May.

Video from their June appearance at The Yard (in Gowanus), and all tour dates, below...

Continue reading "Crystal Antlers - 2009 Tour Dates, new album on Touch & Go"

by Andrew Frisicano

DOWNLOAD: Mi Ami - "New Guitar" (MP3)

"On a series of engaging 12" singles and a fascinating debut LP ("Watersports," released last month), Mi Ami stretches out and languishes in punk-dub, sideways-jazz and African accents. On stage, however, Long (bass) and Martin-McCormick (guitar, vocals) stuck to more direct strategy: attack. That mostly meant McCormick riding Long's gut-punch Rickenbacker bass riffs and Palermo's kinetic drum patterns like a banshee, spraying the songs with convulsive echo-guitar riffs."
[Washington Post on Mi Ami's 3/10 show]

The recently pared down Touch and Go released the band's Watersports LP (art below) on February 17th. All tour dates below....

Continue reading "Mi Ami - MP3, Quarterstick LP, 2009 tour dates (NYC tonight)"

"It is with great sadness that we are reporting some major changes here at Touch and Go Records. Many of you may not be aware, but for nearly 2 decades, Touch and Go has provided manufacturing and distribution services for a select yet diverse group of other important independent record labels. Titles from these other labels populate the shelves of our warehouse alongside the titles on our own two labels, Touch and Go Records, and Quarterstick Records.

"Unfortunately, as much as we love all of these labels, the current state of the economy has reached the point where we can no longer afford to continue this lesser known, yet important part of Touch and Go's operations. Over the years, these labels have become part of our family, and it pains us to see them go. We wish them all the very best and we will be doing everything we can to help make the transition as easy as possible.

"Touch and Go will be returning to its roots and focusing solely on being an independent record label. We'll be busy for a few months working closely with the departing labels and scaling our company to an appropriate smaller size after their departure. It is the end of a grand chapter in Touch and Go's history, but we also know that good things can come from new beginnings." - Corey Rusk

As Time Out pointed out, "Touch and Go began at the dawn of the '80s in East Lansing, Michigan, before founders Tesco Vee and Dave Stimson handed the biz over to Necros bassist Corey Rusk in 1983." Tesco Vee will be in NYC on April 19th when The Meatmen headline a show at Europa with Chapstick. Tickets are on sale.

Touch & Go celebrated their 25th Anniversary as a label in 2006. Check out pictures from the birthday festival they hads that year HERE, HERE, and HERE, and grab a whole ton of Touch & Go MP3's, HERE.

The complete list of labels with distribution ties to Touch & Go, below...

Continue reading "Touch & Go Records cutting distribution, jobs (not RIP)"

DOWNLOAD: Starfucker - Florida (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: All The Saints - "Sheffield" (MP3)

"STARFUCKER is an indie supergroup consisting Sexton Blake's Johh Hodges, Junkface's Ryan Biornstad, and Mr. Fredrick's Shawn Glassford. It's poppy, it's psych, it's fun, it's brilliant...it's like they went to see Rocky Horror and decided live by the "Don't Dream It, Be It Moral" message." [iHeartComix]

"No, Reggie Bush and Drew Brees don't have record deals, and All Saints haven't modified their name for a reunion. All the Saints are a muscular psych trio from Atlanta (via Alabama), and they're also the newest members of the Touch and Go family." [Pitchfork]

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Starfucker + All the Saints = 2 reasons to get moving early Saturday. All dates below...

Continue reading "Starfucker vs. All the Saints (tour dates, CMJ shows)"

by Black Bubblegum

F*ck You, We're Touring!

Killdozer played with all original members at Touch and Go Records' 25th anniversary celebration in Chicago, Illinois on September 9, 2006. To promote the event, flyers declared "Fuck You, We Reunite!", harkening back to the name of their farewell tour ("Fuck You, We Quit!) [Wikipedia]

Killdozer 2008 is still all original members. That includes Michael Gerald (vocalist, bassist, founder), Dan Hobson (original drummer), and Bill Hobson (original guitarist). It has also been confirmed that Paul Zagoras (guitars from 1993-1996) will join the band for some songs in Wisconsin. No NYC tickets yet. All dates below...

Continue reading "Killdozer - reunited, playing NYC & other places - tour dates"

by Black Bubblegum (except the pics)

DOWNLOAD: The Meatmen - Rock & Roll Juggernaut (MP3)

The Meatmen are back again.... and you STILL suck! Who cares about Obama and Clinton when the news is that Tesco Vee is heading out on a campaign of his own... Monster Hate in '08! Tesco Vee, founder of The Meatmen and co-founder of Touch & Go Records, has a few dates scheduled including a show at Europa in Brooklyn on Aug 22nd. Tickets are on sale.

The Meatmen have always been (and still are) Tesco Vee and his latest collaborators. Collaborators have included Brian Baker (Minor Threat, Dag Nasty, Bad Religion), Lyle Presslar (Minor Threat), Todd Swalla (Necros) and many many many others. According to SXSW, "The new line up includes current members of various Midwest hard rock bands including Superchrist, the Paybacks, the Sirens and Red Swan." Speaking of SXSW, that's where all the pictures in this post were taken (Friday, March 14, 2008, 10:00 p.m. @ Emo's Annex to be exact). Editor's note: The show was great. Tesco Vee is a true showman. Everyone in the crowd seemed to agree...

In related news, Dutch Hercules & the Meatmen have a new DVD, The Devil's In The Details, due out this summer (buy it here). It promises "2 Hours of Raw Meat Pleasure"... sounds yummy.

In less related news, but still related, reunited punks and Touch N' Go Labelmates, Negative Approach, recently played Southpaw and WFMU (which is available for download).

Flyers, videos, the rest of the photos, and all tour dates below....

Continue reading "The Meatmen - 2008 Tour Dates & (long lost) SXSW pics "

And with this post we wrap up our coverage of the 25th Anniversary Touch & Go Block Party/Festival....

SUNDAY @ THE TOUCH & GO FESTIVAL | SEPT 10, 2006

"Sunday - Bring on the rain. Holy shit it was cold and awful and rainy today." [Causing Accidents]

"Sunday was dismal in terms of weather" [Time Out Chicago]

Continue reading "Touch & Go 25th Anniversary Block Party | Day Three"

FANS OF NEGATIVE APPROACH @ TOUCH & GO BLOCK PARTY | SEPT 9, 2006

BIG BLACK'S STEVE ALBINI @ TOUCH & GO BLOCK PARTY | SEPT 9, 2006

"...Seven thousand fans — ranging in age from 12 to 62, but largely sporting more-obscure-than-thou tees — packed two outdoors stages at the Hideout, located fittingly enough in one of the city's most industrial areas. Thirty-two acts threw down over the course of 25 hours, from the Shipping News' math-rockin' 5 p.m. set Friday up through Calexico's water-logged feast that wrapped up the once-in-a-lifetime gala by 10 p.m. Sunday...." [MTV]

"...The Hideout block party was several times its normal size, and all weekend Tim was running around doing everything from fixing toilets to snagging working amps when things went wrong. He was a one-man crew, and I reminded him that my VIP bracelet had both a "10" and a "25" on it. "25" for the Touch and Go anniversary, but "10" for the number of years the Hideout has held its block party. He seemed genuinely touched but also proud like a new papa..." [Basement Patter]

"...First, let us take a look at who was not at the festival: Blonde Redhead, TV on the Radio, Yeah Yeah Yeahs – three of the most powerful indie rock bands to come around in the past decade. Now let’s look at who was there: Arcwelder, Didjits, The Monorchid. Yeah, I don’t know who they are either...." [Apneic]

Continued below...

Continue reading "Touch & Go 25th Anniversary Block Party | Day Two"

!!! @ TOUCH & GO BLOCK PARTY | SEPT 8, 2006

The rest below....

Continue reading "Touch & Go 25th Anniversary Block Party | Day One"

Two weeks ago I dedicated an entire radio show to Merge Records. This week (August 29, 2006) I dedicated the show to Touch and Go who are celebrating their 25th anniversary with a three day festival starting Friday September 8th in Chicago. All twenty-nine songs I played are right here as MP3s...

PLAYING FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 8TH
1) !!! (Chk Chk Chk) - Hello? Is This Thing On?
2) Ted Leo & The Pharmacists - Where Have All The Rude Boys Gone?
3) Girls Against Boys - Kill the Sexplayer
4) Supersystem - Everybody Sings
5) Shipping News - We Start to Drift

PLAYING SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 9TH
6) Shellac - Watch Song
7) Big Black - Texas
8) Man or Astro-Man? - DNI
9) Scratch Acid - Greatest Gift
10) Sally Timms - Little Tommy Tucker
11) Didjits - Killboy Powerhead
12) Killdozer - Hi There
13) The New Year - Gasoline

PLAYING SUNDAY SEPTEMBER 10TH
14) Calexico - Frontera
15) Pinback - Fortress
16) CocoRosie - Good Friday
17) The Black Heart Procession - Not Just Words
18) Brick Layer Cake - Stars
19) Seam - Bunch
20) Enon - Kanon
21) Quasi - It's Raining
22) Arcwelder - Do Something Right

NOT PLAYING THE FESTIVAL
23) Dirty Three - I Really Should've Gone Out Last Night
24) Die Kreuzen - Big Bad Days
25) June of 44 - Sink Is Busted
26) The Jesus Lizard - Fly On the Wall
27) TV on the Radio - Dreams
28) Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Art Star
29) Blonde Redhead - Distilled

"Touch and Go Records is an independent record label based in Chicago, Illinois, USA, which began life in 1979 in East Lansing, Michigan as a magazine put out by Tesco Vee. Vee was bored with the punk sounds of the day, and captivated by the emerging hardcore movement in America. Inspired, he put out records by the Necros, Fix, Meatmen, and Negative Approach. Tesco's interest in the label waned around 1982 and he handed it off to Corey Rusk, the Necros' bass player." [Wikipedia]

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BrooklynVegan Blog Radio airs on Sirius Satellite's Left of Center on Tuesday nights @ 10 pm EST, and I think they re-run it on Friday at the same time.

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Supersystem are playing tonight and touring.

Blonde Redhead are playing CMJ and stuff.

TV on the Radio are touring.

CocoRosie are playing Carnegie Hall.

* Don't forget Ted Leo is playing a free show (in the rain?) at South Street Seaport in NYC TODAY.
* The Brooklyn Shellac show is sold out, but there are still tickets for Philly & Ohio.
* Touch & Go Festival schedule below...

Continue reading "Touch and Go 25th Anniversary Schedule Announced"

Some people seem to believe that the Jesus Lizard may join the already stellar lineup of Touch & Go's 25th Anniversary Celebration happening in Chicago this September. On The Download writes, "Touch and Go's 25th anniversary party in Chicago, September 8-10, has confirmed a mini-set by Big Black -- plus a full one by Shellac -- as well as all-orig-members reuions by the Didjits, Girls Against Boys, and Scratch Acid, the band that begat the Jesus Lizard. A Jesus Lizard reunion isn't out of the question, either."

Lineup so far below...

Continue reading "The Jesus Lizard to play Touch & Go Festival?"

Ted Leo says, "As sad as I am that circumstances have forced a move from Lookout! Records, I'm insanely happy and thankful to be able to make that move over to Touch & Go. T&G is a label that has provided me, personally, with amazing music for 25 years; over those years, I have become friends with many of their artists and staff, and it's an honor to now be a real part of their ongoing ruling-ness. In many ways, this decision was an incredibly hard one to make, since I also have great respect for and friendship with a number of other labels who we have been talking to, and what I'm about to say could also apply to them, but in a very big way, T&G's history is my history, like Lookout!'s history is my history, like Gern Blandsten's history is my history -- American Punk Rock, True Believers, the Real Deal. In a world that seems hell-bent on driving itself further and faster down the shitter every day, these things remain not just important, but the absolute core of our endeavors. Believe me when I tell you that it is in this overly dramatic (granted), but absolutely true (none-the-less) spirit that I thank my lucky stars for all those that I have worked with in the past, and the ability to join Touch & Go to take it higher in the future."

Previously
Ted Leo now on the Archive | MP3s
Ted Leo / The Duke Spirit | Tour & PRESALE

The Touch & Go CMJ Showcase feauring !!!, Supersystem, & CocoRosie is @ SOB's in NYC on Sept 16th, 2005. (thx Chris)

Previously
Antony & The Johnsons & CocoRosie @ Town Hall, NYC
CocoRosie & Antony | Tour Dates & Stuff