First shows in well over a decade from the Cincinnati rockers.

By Fred Mills

London's "I'll Be Your Mirror" festival hosted next May by All Tomorrow's parties (and co-curated by Mogwai) just got considerably more interesting. Joining Mogwai, Slayer, Dirty Three, Melvins, Mudhoney and - think of these three as conjoined aesthetically - Codeine, Yuck and Sleep will be the mighty Afghan Whigs, performing for the first time in almost 13 years. Recall that the Cincy band blazed a memorable alt-rock path from 1986 to 2001, at which point frontman Greg Dulli embarked upon a solo career fronting the Twilight Singers.

The Whigs will be playing Saturday night, May 27, at the ATP event, and replace former headliners Guided By Voices, who have had to cancel for personal reasons.

ATP also indicates it will return to Asbury Park where they will follow last year's debut in that city with a 2012 "I'll Be Your Mirror" for the U.S., and the Saturday night of it will be headlined by the Whigs and curated by Dulli. That will take place Sept. 21-23; linup will be announced in January.

"Infinite Mind" first spotlight track from upcoming album Where It Hits You.

By Blurt Staff

In heavy rotation ‘round here this week is a brand new track from troubadour Jim White. Titled "Infinite Mind," it's off his forthcoming Yep Roc album Where It Hits You, set to drop on Feb. 21. You can check out the song right here:

Where It Hits You, White's fifth studio release, was produced in Athens by White (studio whiz John Keane mixed) and it features members of Olabelle, Shak Nasti and The Heap along with such luminaries as Caroline Herring and Centromatic's Will Johnson, among many players. Some details, courtesy the label:

Where It Hits You is Jim's chance to sing his heart out---and sing he does---no small feat, considering the heart that's singing was badly broken during the making of the record. As is often the case with cathartic upheaval, sometimes tribulation forces buried treasure to the surface. This holds true with Where It Hits You, as rich and diverse a record as Jim has ever produced. From the brooding dreamlike opener, "Chase The Dark Away," to the wild eyed stomp of "Here We Go," to the Beefheartesque "Infinite Mind," to the Harvest-era Neil Young ringer "My Brother's Keeper," Where It Hits You finds Jim in full musical stride, effortlessly blending genres and approaches in ways that sometimes boggle the mind. But as White's work has shown over the arc of his career, despite the experimental extremes he recklessly embraces, there's always a cohesive, singular identity that holds the divergent influences together.

An eternally restless soul whose home base is Athens, GA, Jim White is also a visual artist, photographer, essayist, music producer, and composer for films and theater.  Jim continues, "I just can't sit down. I wish I could, but there's so far to go. And somehow, some way, by hook or by crook, I'm gonna get there."

Read a review of White's 2008 live EP Funny Little Cross To Bear.

Interview taped last month at Tony Preston's studio in Ashevile, NC.

By Blurt Staff

Kelly Denson of the Lingua Musica crew talked with Stephanie Morgan, Chuck Lichtenberger and Tim Haney of Asheville combo stephaniesid about their "pop noir" sound and new record, Starfruit, their upcoming trip to Europe, being influenced by Holly Palmer when she played at Be Here Now, the dynamics of their music and more. Tony Preston filmed and edited this video.

You can visit the band and find out more about them at their official website - where, incidentally, they recently unveiled their own video, for the song "I Like It," so check it out. Meanwhile, elsewhere on the BLURT site we have a 2009 interview with the band as well as a review of their previous album Warm People.

The videotaped conversation marks the latest in the ongoing Lingua Musica Interviews series and we're looking forward to many more in the very near future. (Previous installments have included Danny Barnes, Secret B-Sides, RBTS WIN, Dex Romweber Duo, Paper Tiger, Kellin Watson, Dubtribe, Dehlia Low, Ryan Montbleau, Brian McGee, Jon Dee Graham, and more.) BLURT is a proud co-sponsor of Lingua Musica. Please visit the LinguaMusicaAlive.com website.

Hat's off to Roy Harper, er, Mike Watt - spazzy/jazzy deconstruction to beat the band!

By Blurt Staff

Over at the esteemed Magnet Magazine website they've just unveiled an ace bit of tuneage fr yr listening pleasure: it's "Begins With S" by Spielgusher, which for those in the know is Stooges/Minutemen/fIREHOSE bassist Mike Watt, journalist extraordinaire Richard Meltzer, and Yuko Araki and Hirotaka Shimizu of Cornelius. It's a pretty kickass track.

The self-titled debut from Spielgusher will hit stores on Jan. 12 courtesy Clenchedwrench, the indie label that Watt started up recently. Watt himself penned the band's own bio, which is such a great story in and of itself, it's worth republishing, below. Enjoy!

***

From Mike Watt:

"the story of spielgusher begins at what would be near the end of the minutemen. me and d. boon were huge richard meltzer students. we knew of him from his helping to create rock-write. in most places where we read him, it was the only thing we found interesting. it was also gut busting and for corndogs like us, that meant brain busting - or was it the other way around? we dug the confusion. we knew of him from his "hepcats from hell" radio show on kpfk, they were on after midnight on saturdays. they were the best, they were a trip. literally for us - I'd be on the deck w/lights out and just listening/tripping/pondering/voyaging. of course we knew of him from writing lyrics for the blue oyster cult, of course! "scientist rock" is what he called the minutemen in creem magazine for a review of the "bean-spill" e.p.

   he sent a letter to us about being sorry for missing a gig cuz of a wedding so we put it on the back of our "buzz or howl under the influence of heat" e.p. he was a true hero of the minutemen. you can imagine how blown away we were when richard suggested a collaboration. "CRIMONY!" was the word from me and d. boon's mouth at the same time, damn! georgie was into it too.

   richard's idea was to give us ten sets of lyrics, ten spiels and he also wanted to play sax - fuck yeah! I remember getting the spiels from richard... it had be a few days or so since we had just finished a tour opening for rem around the southeast and such. I went over to d. boon's pad to give them to him cuz I wanted him to think of music to go w/them, I was gonna do the same thing and then we could pool our ideas, come up w/the best we could for richard cuz this was a mindblow we were gonna get to do this.

   I found d. boon all red w/fever, he had a sickness. damn, he was like a lobster and thought he should stay home but he said he wouldn't be driving and anyway, I said look here's the richard meltzer spiels and he was so happy - like me, he couldn't believe it and face lit up w/a light that was nothing like the fever one I had found him w/when I got there - man, it was a righteous glow and we looked at each other as if to say "fuck yeah!" or something like that. he said he would take them w/him and work on ideas for them like me. that's the last time I saw him. I know this might read like drama but I'm just trying to explain the history of this proj.

   well, we never got to collaborate w/richard. a sickness 'pert-near killed me in 2000, this illness rattled me hard. it was profound on me. the second opera came out of it. lots of stuff happened in the next couple of years and one of them was to ask richard to record spoken word versions of his poems and such so I could somehow be a part of making music for them. I told him I wanted to call it "spielgusher" - I thought of the name by grasping at something I could best describe how I was feeling, I wanted to get lit by his spiels, I wanted to live! by this time he was no longer in so cal but had moved to portland up in oregon. during 2004 he had recorded what was to be forty eight pieces, just his voice though at one point he did do a solo on a turtle whistle.

man, when he sent me the cd, what a trip - I listened all them spiels tons of times. it was really a trip to find that some of those ten given to us minutemen were a part of these, I remembered the words from those printed pages like there were burned in my head and now hearing richard's voice read them. of course there was a buttload more too but they were all totally him and I loved it big time. somehow I had to put music w/this that I was just as emotionally connected to though I didn't want it to be too watt-preconceived, aahhh - it's hard to find the words but I wanted it to be of a new experience, like when I heard his voice doing the first time listening, how the lept out and yanked on me in a way not expected. so I wanted not obvious collaboration, maybe not ready for something like this... I wanted in a trippy way personal - like in a way how I related to them cuz of richard! I was thinking of big time an out-of-element sitch and tried twice, a couple years apart but both times yielded zilch. not their fault but I was hoping to put bass from how they reacted first-hand to richard w/out my sidemousing that expressing (expression?) but I couldn't put blame on anyone but me for making the foist.

   in the summer of 2007 I met mr shimmy and ms yuko. señor dorian, an ex-pat in japan had turned me onto mi-gu music and it was profound on me. I was asked by them to record on some songs of theirs while I was w/the stooges for the fuji rock fest... wow, they were righteous people and musicians! the next february, I got to do gigs w/them, a couple w/the first incarnation of brother's sister's daughter (actually they would become the core of that proj - but that's another story!). right after that, they asked to record w/me on something of mine - I immediately thought of richard's spiels, I don't know exactly why but I did and it was an honest feeling. the big diff this third though was I would jump in w/them at the same time.

   they had me come to tokyo and for three days in may of 2008, we came up w/sixtyfive pieces of music. it was actually a prac pad in the kamikitazawa part of town at what was then called "gourd island" and mr shimmy brought in his own roland vs-1880 harddisk recorder along w/mics modified by him, custom cables he made himself, huge grounding cable and a isolated power distributor he designed using blocks of wood and tiles - all his own very personal vision of how he likes capturing sound, amazing. there was no separate booth - we were all in one room and those were some warm days in may so I wore a jinbei the entire time. I used mr shimmy's mexican-made fender p-bass, a very good one.

   the rundown for each piece of music went like this: someone would come up w/a motif and then us three would jam around this for a little bit. since there were so many spiels of richard's and many were very short, we made our musical parts likewise. then we would record what we had worked out and move on to the next. we would rotate who would start us off and sometimes ms yuko would move to xylophone or congas. we had a lot of fun, it was really a blast for me. they are amazing listeners, great inventors and communicate most sincerely through music even if their english fails them. even w/all the work in so short of time, this was righteous experience for me.

    when I got home to my pedro town, mr shimmy made me rough mixes of all the music we had done. he had also had mr nago (a former member of mi-gu) overdub guitar on thirteen parts. I then chose what spiels of richard's went w/what music from us three and where in each piece his voice would be. I decided fourteen music pieces would be instrumentals so we could get as much of the three days represented as possible. I decided three poems would stand on their own, to demarcate the whole work. then mr shimmy made the final mixes, an amazing amount of work from him, respect - please understand he mixed it on that same machine (the vs-1880) he recorded us on! incredible... and econo. I then sequenced all the parts so it would sound like one whole piece and then had john golden master it.

   you can't know how happy it made me when I sent it to richard and he said he really dug it, "CRIMONY!"

Was the lead-up (several tracks leaked online) and the hype around the Saturday Night Live appearance worth it? With El Camino out this week on Nonesuch, you betcha! View tour dates, below.

By A.D. Amorosi

If Muddy Waters was correct in assuming that the blues' offspring was a baby named "Rock n' Roll," there had to be an evil twin bastard in there somewhere, something skuzzy that merged illicitly with the dank swamp music. Something out of Akron, yet, The Black Keys.

Unlike their garage brethren (White Stripes, Blues Explosion) the Keys had soul, real soul and genuine concern without distraction. There were those advertisements and that BlackRoc side project but in reality Patrick Carney and Dan Auerbach didn't worry about funny color schemes or pointy shoes. They didn't fool themselves with aping a past's authenticity. Between the ‘60s R&Bish bolt of #Brothers# and the musky muzzy atmospheres of #Attack & Release# the Black Keys proved that they still have nothing to prove. #El Camino# offers, like they say in #Spinal Tap#, something none more black, lean mean T-Rex-ish blues party pop (because the melodies are audaciously and apologetically catchy) that spirals nearly out of control yet is reigned in (really?!?) by producer Danger Mouse at his most spare and frame making

Note: a spare Mouse is still a slick one capable of a steely veneer, talk boxes, cheesy organs, girlie vocals and lots of clapping and boot stomping.

Other than the Zep-y acoustic-then-blammo "Little Black Submarines," Auerbach's mangy but flashy guitars (borrowing from the sounds of Bolan and Ronson at their Jean Genie-est) cling to Carney's hard driving dirtball rhythms like flesh on a meth head's bones. There are Mouse noises to contend with, but nothing gets in the way of the fast danceable pulse and staggeringly messed up guitar-and-vocal attack arranged by Auerbach as if he were taking Savannah (by way of Tiger Mountain) by siege.

Talking as much trash as he plays (all the lyrics here are the dippiest), "Gold on the Ceiling" is like a dirty joke put to music (maybe it's dirty music put to a joke). And "Run Right Back" is the sound love makes when it has nothing left to say and can say it all in under 38 minutes.

Crisp.

Tour Dates:



December 11 Los Angeles, CA KROQ Almost Acoustic Christmas

March 2 * Cincinnati, OH US Bank Arena

March 3 * Detroit, MI Joe Louis Arena

March 4 * Columbus, OH Jerome Schottenstein Center

March 6 * Portland, ME Cumberland Co. Civic Center

March 7 * Boston, MA TD Garden

March 9 * Washington, DC Verizon Center

March 10 * Philadelphia, PA Wells Fargo Center

March 12 * New York, NY Madison Square Garden Arena

March 13 * Montreal, QC Bell Centre

March 14 * Toronto, ON Air Canada Centre

March 16 * Indianapolis, IN Conseco Fieldhouse

March 18 * Grand Rapids, MI Van Andel Arena

March 19 * Chicago, IL United Center

March 20 * Cleveland, OH Quicken Loans Arena

March 23 * Norfolk, VA Constant Convocation Center

            

*Arctic Monkeys support

"New Blood: Live in London in 3 Dimensions" is out now on Eagle Rock. Watch clip of "The Rhythm of the Heat," below.

By David Iskra

Peter Gabriel is a man in love with technology.  Like the rest of us he is a big kid who likes to play with shiny new toys. From sequencers and production tricks, his forward thinking has brought us new sounds and his early forays into multimedia and virtual reality were ahead of their time. He was one of the first artists to use the internet to their advantage and he continues to fight for Human Rights around the globe with technology through his WITNESS Foundation. Though not always financially successful he has very few artistic failures in this arena. His secret to success is to use the technology without allowing it to use you.  It's best to expect the unexpected when dealing with this man.

Perhaps that is why this DVD is a slight disappointment. On one hand, his unexpected foray into the world of orchestras and cover songs was a pleasantly surprising success. Where other artists have failed to achieve anything new by adding a string section to their greatest hits, Gabriel chose other artists' songs and some forgotten gems from his back catalog and breathed new life into them. This resulted not only in his collection of covers (Scratch my Back) but another album recorded a year later which was released in conjunction with this DVD. In fact, there is a CD, DVD, Blu-Ray, 3D Blu Ray and a Special Edition box set.  Got all that? That's just the physical media; the downloads have bonus tracks, exclusives and more. All of these are worth tracking down. In fact, the DVD which was also released in theaters for a brief run isn't bad, it just isn't great and that is the real shame.

Gabriel is a powerhouse live and there are some chill-inducing moments on this DVD. When he hits that high note during "San Jacinto," you'll wonder if someone left the window open as you'll feel chills all over your body. The celebratory "In Your Eyes" will make you forget all about the album version, and his reconstructed "Wallflower" is both epic and moving. But you can hear this magic on the CD without wearing 3D glasses. It's unnecessary overkill - but not in the same way every blockbuster in 3D is.

What I mean is that it's a shame that the one and only tour to be captured in 3D is his most restrained. Whereas his Secret World Tour literally had set pieces and the stage itself moving, lifting, spinning and rotating throughout the arena, and his UP tour had Gabriel inside a large clear plastic ball, this tour finds a more subdued performer holding the audience's attention. Granted, there are some impressive video screens that were tastefully integrated into the show, and seeing a full orchestra in 3D is a rare treat; it's just that 2D would have sufficed in documenting this tour.

In the end, though, you should definitely pick this up and just hope that his back catalog gets the 3D treatment too.

EXTRAS: Behind the scenes documentary.

With a West Coast tour kicking off next week (it starts Dec. 12; Rollins will be on the road with Dinosaur Jr, who he will interview at the shows), let's take a look at his recent book of photos and essays, "Occupants," published by Chicago Review Press.

By Sam Baltes

If there's one word that epitomizes Henry Rollins, it's indefatigable. Since his self-imposed musical retirement, he's still managed to average over 100 spoken-word shows a year, host a TV show, DJ on KCRW, present numerous documentaries, and spend what little of his time that's left over either writing, acting, or traversing the globe. In Occupants, Rollins compiles more than seven years' worth of striking photos with personal observations, political commentary, and biographical anecdotes.

The pictures in Occupants frequently display the effects of America's wanton capitalism on impoverished countries. A particularly memorable image captures a dejected Thai woman sweeping the floor of a McDonalds, with Rollins' caption exemplifying how humiliating and denuding America's insatiable desire for profit is on other cultures. Further compounding this is a photo of an Indian merchant selling Black Flag shirts-the vendor not only ignorant of the band's history, but also Rollins' identity.

The sections dealing with Iraq and Afghanistan are both poignant reminders of the waste and agony that have been caused by the Bush administration. Some of the accompanying captions present mindsets that are diametrically opposed to Rollins', and while painful to read, they're necessary in order to gain a perspective on how the countries' inhabitants view their situation. Rollins' intent in writing Occupants was not just to showcase despair. There is an underlying theme of summoning courage and resilience in the face of abysmal circumstances and he's just as focused on the selflessness and kindness he encounters as the ignorance and cruelty.

Will the original Guns N' Roses lineup - the Tracii Guns version - play?

By Fred Mills

Make plans to hit Cleveland on April 14 - that's when the Beastie Boys, Guns N' Roses, Donovan, Laura Nyro, The Small Faces (and The Faces), and the Red Hot Chili Peppers will be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame. This will mark a first of sorts: Guns N' Roses is the first artist to be selected in their first year of eligibility.

Also getting awards:

Freddie King - "Early Influence"

Don Kirshner - "Ahmet Ertegun (nonperformer) Award"

Tom Dowd, Glyn Johns and Cosimo Matassa - "The Award for Musical Excellence"

The even will be filmed and shown on HBO in May, and rumors are already circulating that the original lineup of Guns N' Roses will perform. Here's hoping that Axl Rose can hold his nose (and keep his mouth closed) long enough to give the fans something they've been wanting for 20 years. Wait - does this mean that Tracii Guns, Ole Beich and Rob Gardner - part of the early original lineup - will be there too? And John Frusciante is slated to be on hand with the Chili Peppers.

Album arrives next year.

By Blurt Staff

Soso, the latest talented songbird to be exported from Sweden, will have her delightfully-titled debut album  That Time I Dug So Deep I Ended Up In China released early next year, and we've got an advance taste of it for you. Check out "Who's Gonna Love Me":

Who's Gonna Love Me by You Can Call Me Soso

A few details to fill you in as you listen to the track:

*The process of her recording has been totally limited to her bedroom in her apartment in Stockholm. In it, she has written and self-produced every track on the album. Every video and photograph has been shot by her boyfriend in her apartment or backyard. She directed and edited them all herself  and claims that her press shots were taken in her bathroom (see above).

*The album title has a suitable double meaning as China is the furthest, most foreign destination she could think of in contrast to the familiar and to stay true to her theme she has played around a lot with traditional Chinese instruments in her electronic productions. Soso also remembers her mother saying to her, while playing in the sandbox as a child; "Soso, if you keep digging like that, you'll end up in China!"

*The record features a number of preludes and semi-instrumentals, including titles "Every Man I Love Has Got A Girlfriend," "Everything Near Becomes Distant" and "Sab Lackath". The latter, an anagram for Black Sabbath, is a track in which Soso recorded herself crying and edited it into a rhythmic beat. There is also an interpretation of Cody Chestnutt's "My Women, My Guitars" on the record, in which Soso sings the lyrics "I've Got A Dick Full Of Blood And A Wide Open Heart To Lean On" as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

Set to drop in March, date tba.

By Blurt Staff

Sweet Heart Sweet Light is the name of the new Spiritualized album and it's due for release on Fat Possum in March. Recorded over the past two years in Wales, Los Angeles and Reykjavik, and mixed for a year by Jason Pierce at his home, Sweet Heart Sweet Light will be Spiritualized's seventh studio album and the first release since last year's epic Radio City Music Hall rendering of their 1997 game changer Ladies In Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space. 

The band recently performed the new album, unannounced, from start to finish live at London's historic Royal Albert Hall. "When you make a record, it has to be the single most important thing in your world," says Pierce. "This time around, I wanted to do something that encompassed all I love in rock ‘n' roll music. It's got everything from Brötzmann and Berry right through to Dennis and Brian Wilson. I'm obsessed with music and the way you put it together and I don't believe there are any rules."

Tracklisting:

1. Hey Jane                                         6. Freedom

2. Little Girl                            7. I Am What I Am

3. Get What You                                8. Mary

4. Too Late                              9. Life Is A Problem

5. Heading For The Top          10. So Long You Pretty Things                                                                                                      

(click the link above to watch a live version of "So Long You Pretty Things")