Bradford Cox Announces New Solo Album (Again)

Deerhunter mastermind Bradford Cox has decided to release his second lone effort afterall. Atlas Sound, as he is referred to as a solo artist, will release Logos via Kranky on October 20. Last summer, Cox accidently left both Deerhunter’s Weird Era Cont. and an early version of Logos in a public folder on his MediaFire account. It wasn’t long before someone found and shared them. Cox reacted angrily at first by posting on his Deerhunter blog, “I am a dumbass,” but “that does not excuse people from sifting through my garbage.” He went on to say, “fuck this shit. I can just make another album. It’s not finished and now it never will be.” Apparently, he changed his mind. Cox later apologized for and deleted his angry posts.

The new album features a guest collaboration with Animal Collective’s Panda Bear on a track called “Walkabout.” As it turns out, Panda Bear gave Cox some sampling lessons during their European tour together. Atlas Sound played an early version of the song last New Year’s Eve. It takes a while to get started but is worth the wait. You can download that version here or stream it below:

Niggy Does The White House

Fishpork favorite Saul Williams was invited to read poetry for Barack Obama at the White House earlier today. According to Williams, who kept fans in the loop throughout the day via Twitter, it was a spectacular event (”I can’t believe this. Words are SOOOO powerful”). Williams even managed to snap a few photos with his phone. Is that allowed in the White House? According to his updates, James Earl Jones even read an excerpt from Othello. It’s unknown what Saul was going to read, but he hinted that he may write something new (”Must write unplanetary poems, counter poems, poems without gravitational pull…”).

In true Niggy Tardust form, Saul Williams made sure he kept it real as he approached Pennsylvania Avenue (in the city where he filmed and starred in 1998’s “Slam”). “But I did see how the business behind these gates led to the realities of those behind bars…and I still do.” Twitter reply of the day: “What the shit? Fox News is going to have a field day with this!”

Animal Collective Play Letterman

Animal Collective have played network television before (Conan O’Brien in 2007) but rejected an opportunity (that time) to widen their audience by playing the obscure “#1″ instead of more accessible tracks from Strawberry Jam (”Peacebone,” Fireworks,” “Derek,” etc.). This time around, they appeared on the Late Show With David Letterman and played a revamped version of “Summertime Clothes.” Although “My Girls” may have attracted more fans, “Summertime Clothes” is a better song (IMO). The performance was very inspired and was highlighted by sheet-covered dancers, additional background lyrics by Panda Bear, and the intense head-bobbing of SP-505 guru, Geologist. See the performance below:

Merri(weather) Christmas: New Animal Collective Leaked

In what has been a very impressive fight against the leak of one of 2009’s most anticipated albums, the inevitable has happened 12 days before its scheduled release date. Animal Collective’s ninth studio album, Merriweather Post Pavillion, has leaked. Fishpork will not post any additional details regarding the locations of the leaked files. However, your usual sources should not let you down.

If you decide to download the album early, please be sure to purchase the album in January and support the band on their upcoming tour. The new album and subsequent tour are the only sure things you can count on in the new year. Besides, supporting your favorite bands would be the perfect New Year’s resolution for 2009. Talk about a merry Christmas!

http://www.myspace.com/animalcollectivetheband
http://www.dominorecordco.com/artists/animal-collective/

Animal Collective’s Email Hacked, Fake Message Sent

According to Bradford Cox’s blog, someone hacked into an email account and posed as Animal Collective’s Brian “Geologist” Weitz and sent the following message:

It has come to my attention that 2 full length tracks off of our upcoming album, Merriweather Post Pavilion have surfaced online. David, Noah, and I please ask that someone assist us and leak all of the remaining tracks on the album. The album is intended to be heard as a whole, and nothing bothers us more than individual tracks leaking and ruining the the overall album experience

-Brian Geologist

Cox relayed the band’s frustration with the situation by talking a bit about his recent conversation with Brian Weitz of Animal Collective:

Just got of the phone with Brian Weitz. Total Bullshit. Someone actually had the nerve to hack into their e-mail account and send this out. The truth is that AC do not want their album to leak and are trying very hard to avoid the drama around said album that has risen to a fever pitch.

The Deerhunter frontman also suggested an alternative to all those anxious fans who cannot wait until the January 6 release date of Merriweather Post Pavillion, Animal Collective’s ninth studio album. He recommends that fans pick up their own instruments and create an album they would hope would sound like the upcoming offering from AC. The comment seemed a bit tongue-in-cheek, but Bradford was trying to get the point across that fans should respect the band’s wishes and wait until the proper release date. The fact that we are less than three weeks away from the release date without a leak is amazing.

New Autolux Song; Album Delayed (Again)

Good news! Autolux posted a new song on their MySpace page. Bad news! Apparently, the new track will not appear on their anticipated new album, Transit Transit, which has now been delayed until after the new year. The new album, which Autolux is co-producing, is set to show off more vocals from ex-Failure/Lusk guitarist, Greg Edwards, and drummer, Carla Azar. Some tracks may even feature vocal harmonizing from all three members (including lead singer and bassist, Eugene Goreshter).

If Greg Edwards wasn’t my favorite guitarist on the planet, I’d probably have given up hope of another album release by the amazing Autolux. This is no surprise for Autolux, however, whose first album, Future Perfect, was severely delayed as well. Apparent battles wtith record labels seem to be the culprit this time around. The new record was supposed to be out over a year ago. A new MySpace post has explained that “Autolux is dealing with getting the business end of the music squared away” and promises a new web site as well. Haven’t we heard this before? In the meantime, the new instrumental track is called “Fat Kid” and explores the electronica genre. Autolux swears that the tuba/tympani sound is from Greg’s guitar. OK, I’ll wait a few more months … but that’s it!

You can stream the track on Autolux’s MySpace page here.

Animal Collective’s “Brothersport” Leaks

A studio version of “Brothersport,” the last track on Animal Collective’s forthcoming Merriweather Post Pavilion album, has appeared on the file hosting site zShare (first reported by The Fader). As Pitchfork Media has reported, the MP3 seems to be edited from a French podcast called LesInRocks.com. A blog on Fact Magazine’s web page had also posted excerpts from studio versions of different tracks on the album but was asked to take them down. Fact Magazine says the band has made Panda Bear the focus for the new album and is calling Merriweather Post Pavilion Animal Collective’s best:

We were asked to take the links down. Which, of course, is totally understandable. Apologies. What we will say is that Merriweather Post Pavilion is almost certainly the best thing Animal Collective have ever done, and that if 2009 produces one song better than ‘My Girls’, then we’ll be happy pandas indeed.

The first leak of a new song off a new Animal Collective album is big news. What’s even more important to consider is that this begins the official countdown to the entire album leaking. As a hardcore fan, I plan on purchasing the CD (and possibly the vinyl), and I already have my ticket to their January 20 show in NYC. If you decide to listen to the leak that is sure to come, make sure you also purchase a legit copy as well. They don’t make this beautiful music for free.

The zShare file for “Brothersport” can be downloaded here.

www.myspace.com/animalcollectivetheband

Special Feature: Panda Bear vs. Brian Wilson

Comparisons have been made before between Panda Bear and Brian Wilson. Some fans of each get angry at the mention of it and dismiss altogether what really cannot be denied. I don’t think you can ignore Noah Lennox’s (aka Panda Bear) likeness to the music legend in both appearance and musical style. When I first download Panda Bear’s Person Pitch last year, my first thought was “this sounds like a Beach Boys record.” That wasn’t necessarily a bad thing, especially because it seemed to highlight the best parts of Wilson’s style and technique. I’ve been thinking about this comparison for quite some time now and figured that it was time to do some research.

The next two photos are going to confuse the shit out of you. In case you can’t tell, Panda Bear is on the left and Brian Wilson is on the right. Wait a second! I thought the comparison dealt with musical styles. The fact that Panda Bear looks like Brian Wilson’s twin brother is just scary.

Now let’s move on to the music. At each artist’s Last.fm page you can listen to several of their popular tracks:

1. Go to Brian Wilson’s Last.fm page here and listen to Child is the Father of the Man and Old Master Painter (you will have to click on another song first to see these tracks appear).
2. Next, check out Panda Bear’s Comfy in Nautica and Take Pills here.

It’s up to you whether you think the comparison is legit or not. If decided that is is, does that mean that Panda Bear is ripping off Brian Wilson? Is he unoriginal? Not the case. Person Pitch is an experiment in noise and lyrical melody, much like Brian Wilson’s early and late work, but takes it to another level that hasn’t been explored yet in music. If your interest is peaked, check out the pair of 12-minute epics, Bros and Good Girl (also on Person Pitch). These songs will give you a good idea of where Panda Bear is heading musically in his solo career and as a member of Animal Collective.

Just don’t tell Noah that he’s going to grow up to look like this:

Tanya Tagaq Gillis to Release LP on Ipecac

Mike Patton’s Ipecac Records is known for releasing some of the most original and quirkiest, avant-garde music on the planet. This September will be no different for the label, as acclaimed Inuk throat singer, Tanya Tagaq Gillis, releases her sophomore effort. Throat singing is the manipulation of the harmonic resonances as air passes over the vocal folds. The more ancient versions of throat singing come from Asia, but modern death metal bands (Job For a Cowboy, All Shall Perish, The Devil Wears Prada) that implement the “pig squeal” also fall into the throat singing category. Tanya Tagaq Gillis is part of the resurging Inuit tradition of throat singing in Canada.

Gillis has collaborated with an impressive list of artists, most of whom have approached her. She’s worked with Björk on 2004’s Medúlla, as well as the soundtrack for Drawing Restraint 9 (also by Björk). The world-renowned Kronos Quartet invited her to co-writer and perform on their Nunavut release. Gillis’ new release, Auk (Inuktitut translation is ‘blood’), features guest vocals by Canadian hip-hop artist Buck 65, human beat boxer, Shamik, and the always versatile Mike Patton. As an up-and-coming artist, Gillis hopes to collaborate much more in the future, “In my head, I have 500 records and I don’t want to do that alone! I want to embrace the other beautiful musicians to help me pursue my goal of making all the music I dream of making. When I do music with somebody, it is so intimate and beautiful to find people that think the same way that I do.”

http://www.myspace.com/tagaq

Animal Collective Reveal New Song Live

The Pitchfork Music Festival 2008 came and went last week in Chicago. For those lucky enough to attend, they witnessed the musical rapture of bands like Elf Power, Fuck Buttons, Bon Iver, Apples in Stereo and Public Enemy. However, one of the most anticipated performances was that from festival headliners, Animal Collective. Frequently described as unpredictable live, AC treated the crowd to a new tune called “Lion in a Coma.” You can watch the performance of the new song below. Animal Collective will release their ninth full-length on Domino Records late this year. The LP is currently being called LP9, which should change as we get closer to the release date.

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