What took almost four years and seven studios to record, The Spirituality aptly leads the listener on a quest for inner peace and eternal life with songs revolving around an introspective dream-state. But the music is definitely not for the casual listener, as the abstract rhythms and convoluted vocals can border on distracting as opposed to mesmerizing.
Since the mid 90
Survivors of Louisiana
Fresh off last fall’s release of Tour de France Soundtracks, their first album in more than 15 years, electronic music pioneers Kraftwerk have posted dates for a world tour.
The trek is set to begin February 6 in Helsinki, Finland. After a week of Scandinavian dates, they’ll jump to Japan for eight shows, five of them in Tokyo. Then it’s back to Europe, where they’ll make the rounds until mid-April, when they cross the Atlantic for some North American exposure.
According to the current itinerary, Canada and the United States get two shows each, but don’t be surprised if more dates are forthcoming.
The story of their latest album actually began about 20 years ago. The single “Tour de France” was released in 1983 and was originally slated to appear on the Techno Pop album. However, due to a variety of complications, that album never made it to stores. An updated version of the original single appears on the Astralwerks release of Tour de France Soundtracks, along with a bevy of new compositions.
Source pollstar.com.
Liz Phair, Junior Senior, Mission Of Burma, N*E*R*D, the Walkmen, TV On The Radio, Papa Roach and Modest Mouse are among the first crop of acts confirmed for the South by Southwest music festival, to be held March 17-21 in Austin, Texas.
Other acts set to perform are comedian David Cross, the B-52s, Alkaline Trio, Crystal Method, Ozomatli, the Decemberists, Pretty Girls Make Graves, the Thrills, Athlete, Matthew Dear, Battles, British Sea Power, Cex, Cooper Temple Clause, the National, Cracker, Spoon’s Britt Daniel, Preston School Of Industry, the Delgados, Radio 4 and Dillinger Escape Plan.
In addition, the conference has confirmed interview segments with Flaming Lips frontman Wayne Coyne (March 19) and independent icon Ani DiFranco (March 20). For more information, visit South by Southwest’s official Web site.
Source billboard.com.
Before The String Cheese Incident heads out of the country for a Spring tour, this years Mid-Winter Music Festival will have the band returning to the Fillmore in Denver, March 11, 12 & 13th. As usual, special guests will join The Cheese, with this years acts being Mofro, David Lindley and Wally Ingram, and Vassar Clements.
The band’s 4th International Incident will be held shortly after, on March 19 & 20 in Interlaken, Switzerland. This year’s International Incident, dubbed The Swiss Cheese Incident combines 4 days of skiing in the magnificent Jungfrau region of Switzerland with 2 full-blown shows. Madison House Travel has secured special negotiated rates and will be offering full travel packages available to all who wish to attend.
These intimate shows high in the Swiss Alps will kick off a two-week whirlwind tour of Europe which takes the band from Milan and Munich to Amsterdam and London with stops in-between.
And that’s not all. After Europe, SCI is heading to Australia and Japan from April 10th thru the 23rd where they will share the stage with James Brown, Taj Mahal, Dr. John, and many more great artists at the Blues & Roots Festival in Byron Bay.
For all tour dates and related news, see stringcheeseincident.com.
Big Head Todd and the Monsters eighth album Crimes of Passion on Sanctuary Records is due in stores February 10th. Two themes run consistently through Crimes of Passion, a love of rock and roll and the need to tell compelling, human stories.
The band will hit the road on February 10th in support of the release with shows running through March 27th in Park City, UT.
For complete tour dates visit bigheadtodd.com.
Five studio albums George Harrison recorded for his own Dark Horse label, most of which have been out of print for years, will be reissued on February 24th along with a box set covering the same span.
The Dark Horse Years 1976-1992, includes 1976’s 33 1/3, 1979’s George Harrison, 1981’s Somewhere in England, 1982’s Gone Troppo and Cloud Nine, which broke into the Top Ten in 1987. The box also contains 1992’s Live in Japan, a set in which Harrison performed songs from his solo career as well as his Beatles highlights backed by Eric Clapton and his band. Each record contains bonus tracks, and the box is augmented with a seventy-five-minute DVD featuring live clips and promotional footage. Also included is a history of Dark Horse Records by Harrison’s wife Olivia and liner notes by Rolling Stone’s David Fricke.
The remastered albums will also be issued separate from the set.
Source rollingstone.com.
