Beck, Shins, Yeah Yeah Yeahs Play Download Festival
Radiohead bootlegs play download festival (on my computer)

The West Coast version of the second annual U.S. Download Festival comes to San Francisco's Shoreline Amphitheatre on September 30, and headliners include Beck, the Shins, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Muse, Wolfmother, Rogue Wave, and Coheed and Cambria. Tickets are on sale now, and there are plenty more acts to be announced.

Unlike most festivals with multiple locations, which usually look pretty similar, Download has created an odd, sucky version of itself for its first venture to the East Coast. The bands hitting Boston's Tweeter Center on August 20 include 311, the Dropkick Murphys, G. Love & Special Sauce, Jurassic 5, and the Wailers. This Boston version of the festival comes to the Tweeter Center August 20. Contact high, here we come!

Delgados to Release Peel Sessions

Much like John Peel himself, the Delgados are gone but not forgotten. And the members of the band are not forgetting their erstwhile fans, either, which is why they've assembled The Complete BBC Peel Sessions for an August 8 release on Transdreamer in America. (It came out on June 12 on Chemikal Underground in the UK.)

Exactly what it claims to be, The Complete BBC Peel Sessions collects every Peel Session track from the group's debut on the show in 1996 through to their last appearance in 2004 on a two-disc, 29-song set that includes covers of ELO's "Mr. Blue Sky" and the Dead Kennedys' "California Über Alles" (back to back!). According to a press release, "extensive liner notes that deal with the background of the sessions, the recording of specific tracks, and the odd anecdotal aside" will also be included. Check the tracklist after the jump. [MORE...]

MP3: The Delgados: A Parcel of Rouges

Ex-Lifetime Bassist Arrested for Hoarding Body Parts

Back in 1992 and 1993, Lifetime had a bass player by the name of Linda Kay. She performed on the original version of the band's album Background, but wasn't featured on the actual recording. Her photo does, however, appear in the disc's artwork.

Over the past 13 years, Kay hasn't exactly followed a usual punk rock career path-- solo records, starting a label, other musical endeavors, etc. Oh no. She's been stripping at an all-nude Union, New Jersey bar called Hott 22...and apparently collecting human body parts in her South Plainfield home, according to the Philadelphia Daily News.

Whoa.

On Friday, July 28, Kay was arrested after police found a human hand in a jar of formaldehyde and six human skulls in her basement. The Philadelphia Inquirer reported today that yesterday, August 1, Kay pleaded not guilty to "unlawful disposal of human remains." She is currently in the Middlesex County jail, with bail set at $50,000.

MP3: Lifetime: Young, Loud and Snotty

Red Krayola Kick Off Rare Tour

With Introduction (their latest full-length on Drag City) outta the way, the Red Krayola is reacquainting with the road for a six-date tour, starting tonight in New York City. Accompanying vocalist/guitarist and Red Krayola mainstay Mayo Thompson are Introduction contributors Noel Kupersmith (bass), Jon McEntire (drums), Tom Watson (guitar), and Stephen Prina (vocals).

For the Philadelphia show, the band will be joined by fellow Drag City-dweller and multi-instrumentalist David Grubbs.

Shows:

* with White Magic, DJ Magik Mike

As previously reported, Drag City is prepping a Red Krayola documentary, showcasing live footage and archived ephemera gleaned from the last 40 very colorful years of the band's existence. According to the label, the project is nearing completion and director Amy Cargill will be filming Mayo & Co. on most of their East Coast tour, as well as on an October tour slated for Japan.

In November, Drag City will release a six-track Red Krayola EP titled Red Gold, although a tracklist has yet to be revealed.

Video: Red Krayola: War Sucks (live)

Stream: Ryan Adams: "France"
I see London, I see...

Only a songwriter as prolific as Ryan Adams could schedule a ton of tour dates and still call it an off year. While there are rumors of three records still to come in 2006 for Adams, in this case it's best to stick with the facts. And the fact is that there is a new song streaming from Adams' website.

(Hopefully it will stay there, unlike that new Beck song that appeared and then magically disappeared from his site.)

Cryptically placed in the top right corner of the page under the words "ryan adams...france," the song continues the full band mode Adams has been pursuing recently. It's a pleasant, straightforward rock song about a lover who has moved on. What a surprise, right?

Anyway, we're not sure if the song is actually called "France". Maybe it was recorded there. Maybe it's the title of a new record or four. Maybe it's the name of an opera he's composing. It could be anything with him. The only other thing we know is that, as previously reported, Adams is currently on tour with his band the Cardinals and will remain so into the fall.

Stream: Ryan Adams: France

Jeremy Enigk Returns

On his second solo LP, World Waits, the social agitator and former Sunny Day Realtor assures that there are simple solutions to such problems. "People are starving--feed ‘em," he said in a press release, "As an American especially, it's so easy for me to put on blinders and live in TV land. That frustrates me, that laziness to take responsibility."And what better way to take responsibility than to release a solo album? Wait, don't answer that.

World Waits will appear October 17 on his own Lewis Hollow Records (distributed by Reincarnate/Sony), ten years after the release of his debut solo LP, Return of the Frog Queen. Since SDRE's break-up in 2000, Enigk has not, in fact, been lazy or stuck in TV land. (Or feeding the starving.) Rather, he made an album with the Fire Theft, scored a film (The United States of Leland), and been a regular topic of conversation on Internet message boards. (The kids just adore debating Enigk's spiritual awakening. A friend of mine in college was always trying to point out the salvation messages encrypted within "In Circles".)

World Waits contains ten epically-titled tracks, including the title cut, which Enigk describes as his "love letter to the world." Enigk is currently touring North America, making a stop at Lollapalooza on August 4 and at Bumbershoot on September 3, before heading to Europe for a couple late-summer fests. [MORE...]

MP3: Jeremy Enigk: Been Here Before
MP3: Jeremy Enigk: River to Sea

Bloc Party Confirm Track Titles

Bloc Party host Kele Okereke has passed out goody bags to his favorite attendees-- the people of fan site blocparty.net.

Okereke hooked the webpage up with an exclusive list of tracks set to appear on the band's sophomore album.

The Jacknife Lee-produced record is set to include at least a portion of the following tunes:

A Prayer to the Lord
England
Hunting for Witches
It Started in an Afternoon
Kreuzberg
On
Seroxat
Song for Clay (Disappear Here)
Sunday
Uniform
Waiting for the 7:18
We Were Lovers
Where Is Home?

Those that don't make the cut will likely appear as B-sides at some point in the future. The disc remains untitled at this point in time. [MORE...]

Video: Bloc Party: Banquet (live)

Sleater-Kinney: Too Hot for D.C.!

Man, not having electrical power is such a drag: no TV, no microwave, no live Sleater-Kinney...

Much to the dismay of fans, the band's sold-out August 1 show at Washington D.C.'s 9:30 Club was cancelled due to an electrical emergency. A transformer located outside the club overheated, and the fire marshal abruptly ordered the venue to shut down power. Apparently, excessive energy use in the D.C. area (read: thousands of insanely hot people cranking their air conditioners) caused this overheating.

According to Pitchfork reader Rob Runett, "Ten minutes before S-K was set to perform one of their last shows, a club employee appeared onstage to announce that the gig was cancelled. He mentioned through the rising din of sighs, grunts, and boos that a reschedule date would be announced soon."

Earlier on in the show, opening act the Rogers Sisters experienced difficulty with the "mind-warping temperatures and humidity": the drummer lost the use of her snare drum with only a few songs left in the band's set.

Luckily, S-K has set a make-up date for their performance. The show will go on tomorrow, August 3, at 9 pm (Eastern Time), with the entire concert being webcast live on NPR.org.

Video: Sleater-Kinney: Entertain

Sufjan Stevens Adds Two Shows
Also brushes his teeth, takes out the trash

Stop the presses! Sufjan Stevens has added two whole shows to his fall North American tour with Asthmatic Kitty labelmate My Brightest Diamond.

Now, lucky New Yorkers and Berkeley-ites (Berkleyers? Berkleyans?) each will have one more opportunity to welcome the indie-folk messiah with open arms.

Sufjan's full itinerary is after the jump, with the new dates in bold. [MORE...]

Stream: Sufjan Stevens: The Avalanche

Joanna Newsom Reveals New Album Title, Release Date

On November 14, the Ys descend. Yes, that's the release date and title of harpist/pianist/woodland creature Joanna Newsom's much-anticipated new album, due out on Drag City. It features arrangements scored and conducted by legendary Beach Boys collaborator Van Dyke Parks, and from what we've been hearing, the record contains some looong songs.

That's all the info we have--tracklist, etc., are forthcoming. For now, the only scheduled Joanna Newsom live show will take place August 24 at the McCarren Pool in Brooklyn. Neko Case and Martha Wainwright are also on the bill.

Video: Joanna Newsom: Sprout and the Bean

Ellen Allien Unveils New Fashion Line
Tour With Apparat

Producer/DJ/label owner Ellen Allien wears many hats. She also wears many dresses. The artist recently launched the Ellen Allien Fashion Line, in cooperation with designer Markus Stich, now available online and in select Berlin stores.

The summer 2006 line contains ruffly country skirts and dresses with just a hint of the space age, while a press release informs us that the fall/winter collection "will have straighter cuts and lines and be very feminine-- all in black or white" and will be featured in more select stores worldwide.

Also, "Ironing is forbidden." Ya.

Allien's last fashion venture was a clothing and shoe line called Thrills, just like her 2005 solo album. Today: self-titled fashion lines; tomorrow: the world.

Ellen Allien has a lengthy tour scheduled for the rest of the summer and fall, both solo and with her Orchestra of Bubbles partner Apparat. [MORE...]

Junior Boys Schedule Tour

With five-star track "In the Morning" (the single's on its way August 14 via Domino) and a slew of other new tunes slated for release on sophomore album So This Is Goodbye (September 11 via Domino), Junior Boys are this fall's band to see live.

And judging by the size of their recently announced tour, there will be enough fans writing about them to launch the explosion of the blogosphere. From where we're standing, it should look pretty spectacular.

The UK/North American trek will run its course through this month, September, and October, making it nothing short of Senior. [MORE...]

MP3: Junior Boys: In the Morning

Do you have a news tip for us? Anything crazy happen at a show you attended recently? Do you have inside info on the bands we cover? Is one of your favorite artists (that's not somebody you know personally) releasing a new record you'd like to see covered? You will remain completely anonymous, unless we are given your express permission to reveal your identity. (Please note that publicists, managers, booking agents, and other artist representatives are generally exempt from this rule, but will also be granted anonymity if requested.)