WEEZER & THE FLAMING LIPS ANNOUNCE EPIC "SIDE-BY-SIDE" CO-HEADLINING SETS

July 11, 2011 - (Burbank, CA) - THE FLAMING LIPS continue to confirm additional concert dates to their current summer itinerary. All dates are listed below. The LIPS are fresh off their very special two-night engagement in Los Angeles at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery where they played to ecstatic capacity crowds, The band performed THE SOFT BULLETIN in its entirety the first night and their version of Pink Floyd's THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON (including spectacular vocal assistance from Peaches on a pair of Dark Side songs) on the second night. In addition, the LIPSadded a brief, stripped-down sunrise performance on the cemetery's front lawn with assistance from Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros on the morning of June 15^th. Each of these events has been heavily documented in the media so check out YouTube for highlights.

An exclusive Flaming Lips (life-size) Gummy Skull, with USB drive featuring "The Soft Bulletin: Live La Fantastique de Institution 2011," was available for this event. It's very possible that some of these special Skulls may remain in stock so double check the LIPS Official Store and grab it up before it's gone...forever.

Possibly the most exciting news of the summer is the confirmation of a pair of NY area co-headline shows with Weezer July 28, at PNC Bank Arts Center and July 29, at Nikon at Jones Beach Theater. This will be a first for both bands as they will take the stage together and trade off songs. Naturally, these will be very special events and most likely will never happen again. The only thing that can be predicted is to expect the unpredictable. Yeasayer will provide support.

Commenting on these shows Wayne Coyne remarked: "The Flaming Lips and Weezer are playing a show together...where they are actually playing together." "I asked Wayne if he has an extra bubble I could ride in," dared Weezer's Rivers Cuomo. Needless to say don't miss these unprecedented, monumental happenings.

Complete list of confirmed dates are as follows:

Wed July 27 Bank Of America Pavilion Boston, MA

Thur July 28 PNC Bank Arts Center Holmdel, NJ

(w/ LipsWeezer/WeezerLips Extravaganza & Yeasayer)

Fri July 29 Nikon and Jones Beach Wantagh, NY

(w/ LipsWeezer/WeezerLips Extravaganza & Yeasayer)

Sun July 31 Osheaga Festival Montreal, Canada

(Featuring a special performance of "The Soft Bulletin" and more)

Wed Aug 3 Red Rocks Amphitheater Morrison, CO

(w/ Primus - Special performance of "Dark Side Of The Moon" and more)

Thur Aug 4 Harrah's Council Bluffs Council Bluffs, IA

Fri Aug 5 Kanrocksas - Kansas Speedway Kansas City, KS

Sat Aug 6 Brady District Block Party Tulsa, OK

(w/ Primus, MuteMath and more)

Sat Aug 20 Sound Town Fest/Somerset Amphit Somerset, WI

Sat Sep 3 Metamorphose Izu City, Japan

Fri Sep 9 Long Beach Long Island, NY

Sat Sep 10 Hopscotch festival Raleigh, NC

Fri Sep 16 Telluride Blues & Brews Festival Telluride, CO

Sat Sep 17 The Great Saltair Magna, UT

Mon Sep 19 Eagle River Pavilion Eagle, ID

Tue Sep 20 Keller Auditorium Portland, OR

Wed Sep 21 Western Washington Fair Puyallup, WA

Sat Sep 24 Blackwater Music Festival Live Oak, FL

Tue Oct 25 Main Street Armory Rochester, NY

Thur Oct 27 Norva Norfolk, VA

Sat Oct 29 Moogfest Asheville, NC

As previously reported the LIPS have been busy recording post-EMBRYONIC new material on their own as well as indulging in some unique collaborations. Some of these amazing recordings have manifested themselves into and onto the resoundingly popular 12" round vinyl "record" format and pressed in vivid multi-hues of Mr. Coyne's own choosing. These lovely limited-edition artifacts have been sparsely distributed to independent record stores around the country and though most have been grabbed up, search carefully and you shall be rewarded. No two are exactly alike but some are still out there in the bins so happy hunting. Other recordings have found their way onto Flash Drives embedded into the flavorful brains of juicy edible Gummy Skulls randomly distributed to various music emporiums or sold at the Hollywood Forever L.A. shows. Again, these too, may be findable. To recap, here is a list of all the new LIPS music released to date this year:

"TWO BLOBS F**KING," released on Valentine's Day, Feb 14^th, and available on YouTube now in 12 musical and visual parts designed to be played back on iPhone mobile devices simultaneously to create a lo-fi symphonic effect.

A very limited edition, self-released four-song 12" color vinyl single followed in March and new songs with THE LIPS collaborating with Neon Indian and featuring the tracks:

"Is David Bowie Dying?," "Alan's Theremin," "You Don't Respond" and "Do You Want New Wave or Do You Want the Truth Part 2."

April saw the release of "HEADY NUGGS: THE FIRST 5 WARNER BROS. RECORDS 1992 - 2002" for Record Store Day comprised of the complete recordings of: Hit To Death In The Future Head (1992), Transmissions From The Satellite Heart (1993), Clouds Taste Metallic (1995), The Soft Bulletin (1999), and the Grammy Award-winning, Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots (2002). Standard issue pressed on 120-gram black vinyl for Record Store Day internationally. A "Special Limited Edition" was also available with each album pressed on colored vinyl (five different colors), sold through the LIPS' webstore.

Also in April was the first-ever Gummy Skull with different flavored Gummy brain inside the skull (life-sized, completely edible and weighing in at over seven lbs. of chewy goodness), which houses a USB drive inside the brain - of a different flavor and color - with four new and exclusive songs: "Drug Chart," "In Our Bodies, Out Of Our Heads," "Walk With Me," and "Hillary's Time Machine Machine." These are now rare but check www.flaminglips.com for details.

In May, another varied colored vinyl limited-edition 12" four-song EP was released, this time featuring the LIPS collaborating with Prefuse 73 (Guillermo Scott Herren). Tracklist: "The Super Moon Made Me Want to Pee," "Heavy Star Moving," "Be Like That...That...That," and "Guillermo's Bolero."Search and you shall find!

In June, a limited edition marijuana-flavored Gummy Skull with a USB drive featuring "The Soft Bulletin: Live La Fantastique de Institution 2011" was available at the Hollywood Forever Los Angeles shows.

Just in time for July, the LIPS have introduced the Gummy Song Fetus in limited quantities to fans in tour markets. Naturally, the prenatal confection contains a USB Drive embedded into its cranial core with three brand-new recordings exclusive to this release: "Enthusiasm for Life Defeats Existential Fear Part 2," "Steven's Moonbow," and "Squishy Glass." These will be very limited so don't hesitate.

Future releases include such exotic formats as...well, you'll just have to keep an eye on www.flaminglips.com or look for Wayne Infamous tweets for clues. Until then, don't miss the LIPSlive this summer. Check the LIPS official Store for brand new merch available now.

Photo credit - Greg Jacquin (The Flaming Lips - Central Park SummerStage)

BATTLES’ “MY MACHINES” FEAT. GARY NUMAN 12” SINGLE OUT AUGUST 16 ON WARP RECORDS ALBUM GLOSS DROP AVAILABLE NOW, RECEIVES CRITICAL ACCLAIM

BATTLES’ “MY MACHINES” FEAT. GARY NUMAN
12” SINGLE OUT AUGUST 16 ON WARP RECORDS - ALBUM GLOSS DROP AVAILABLE NOW, RECEIVES CRITICAL ACCLAIM

“Creepy, surreal, hyper-real. It’s an art of implausibilities.”—New York Times

BATTLES’ “My Machines,” featuring synth-pop pioneer Gary Numan, is available as a 12” colored vinyl single August 16 via Warp Records. Please see attached for artwork. The track—off of the band’s critically acclaimed sophomore record Gloss Drop (available now via Warp Records)—has been hailed by NME as “propelled on stern, piston drums, pointillistic guitar notes scattering like frightened crickets.” Numan notes that “working with Battles was an easy choice for me. They have a unique approach to making music and a clear idea of what they want. They are inventive, adventurous, unpredictable and I’m proud to be involved.” The single, which includes the b-side “A.M. Gestalt,” is currently available for pre-order at http://bit.ly/ogdr7Y. “My Machines” is currently streaming at http://soundcloud.com/battles/my-machines-feat-gary-numan.

Gloss Drop has received praise from the New York Times, Entertainment Weekly, New York Magazine, Washington Post, and Pitchfork, among many others. SPIN called the record “virtuoso art funk that’ll sophisticate your booty,” while Filter proclaimed the record “…as delightfully fucked up as it is musically seamless.” USA Today posited, “This shrewd and vigorous follow up to 2007 debut Mirrored finds BATTLES winning the war against convention.” Upon the album’s release the band performed “Futura” on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon,” which prompted ?uestlove to hail the band saying, “They’re a living car chase scene from an updated “Streets of San Francisco” sequel. Yikes!”

The band will embark on a series of summer tour dates including an appearance at Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago on July 15, followed by an extensive fall tour. See below for completed confirmed dates.

In addition to Numan the three-piece outfit collaborates with guest vocalists on the record including Chilean-born Kompakt minimal techno producer Matias Aguayo, cult indie rocker Kazu Makino of Blonde Redhead and Yamantaka Eye, the messianic dreadlocked front man of Japanese cosmiche future beat unit, the Boredoms.

BATTLES came together in New York in 2002 drawing together disparate strands of hardcore, avant-garde tonal minimalism, neo-classical, techno and post rock featuring drummer John Stanier (Helmet), guitarists Ian Williams (Don Caballero) and Dave Konopka (Lynx) and Tyondai Braxton. After a string of EPs, the group signed to WARP and released their debut Mirrored in 2007. Recorded during the winter of 2009 at Machines with Magnets studio in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, Gloss Drop was initially recorded with Braxton but he later departed. With completely reworked tracks minus Braxton, BATTLES offers Gloss Drop.

BATTLES TOUR DATES

July 15 Chicago, IL Pitchfork Music Festival

July 16 Madison, WI UW Madison Memorial Terrace

July 17 Iowa City, IA Blue Moose Taphouse

July 18 Lincoln, NE Bourbon Theater

July 19 Denver, CO Bluebird

July 20 Salt Lake City, UT Urban Lounge

July 22 Victoria, BC Sugar Nightclub

July 23 Vancouver, BC Rickshaw Theater

July 24 Seattle, WA Capitol Hill Block Party

October 1 Asbury Park, NJ All Tomorrow’s Parties

October 2 Boston, MA Royale Nightclub

October 3 Montreal, QC Le National

October 4 Toronto, ON Phoenix Concert Theatre

October 5 Cleveland, OH Grog Shop

October 6 Pittsburgh, PA VIA Festival

October 7 Chicago, IL Vic Theatre

October 8 Minneapolis, MN Fine Line Music Café

October 10 Edmonton, AB Starlite Room

October 13 Portland, OR Wonder Ballroom

October 16 Pomona, CA Glasshouse

October 17 Los Angeles, CA Mayan Theater

October 18 Scottsdale, AZ The Venue

October 20 Houston, TX Fitzgerald’s

October 21 Austin, TX Emo’s

October 22 Dallas, TX Grenada

October 24 Nashville, TN Exit In

October 25 Birmingham, AL Work/Play

October 26 Tampa, FL Crowbar

October 27 Miami, FL Grand Central

October 28 Atlanta, GA Masquerade

October 29 Ashevill;e, NC Moogfest

October 30 Washington, D.C. 9:30 Club

October 31 Philadelphia, PA Theater of the Living Arts

Official site: http://www.bttles.com

Gomez - JULY 14 - NYC TERMINAL 5 SHOW

JULY 14 - NYC TERMINAL 5 SHOW

New York City area folks! The Gomez show at Terminal 5 is little over two weeks away (Thursday, July 14th to be specific). That gives you a little over two weeks to buy tickets! Here's the link; the rest is up to you.

If you're saying to yourself, "I already have tickets, but thanks for the friendly reminder none the less!" we appreciate your cordiality. However, don't forget to invite your friends; they're probably waiting for an invite. See you soon ladies and gents!

Review - No Remission Through Blackened Skies Album Release Party - The Studio at Webster Hall June 18, 2011

http://i932.photobucket.com/albums/ad165/bjurado85/No%20Remission/Record%20Release%20-%20black%20and%20white/DSC_0103b1.jpg

Pits, pits, pits. This show was Pit Central from the get-go despite the higher than normal amount of ladies for a metal audience. Webster Hall went pretty smoothly.

Up first, Left in Ruins (LIR) set the tone of the night with an immediate pit breaking out. With three guitarists, bass, percussion and vocals, LIR's sound was down right huge. Tight build ups and layered harmonies lent well to pit activity, the crowd was really into it. Each of their songs had its own sound as well as each musician. The guitarists traded off soloing within songs, each with their own respective approach, to create a cohesive musical statement. Solos ranged from liquid smoothness to gritty thrash; tied together with counter melodies traded off between guitars and bass; all held together with a strong percussive foundation. LIR showed off a very textured writing approach with a plethora of stylistic variation.

Speaking of variety, Arcane Malevolence put on a set to remember. I had heard about this bombastic front man before but had yet to see a performance for myself. I caught myself having a hard time reviewing the set due to bouts of giggling at his mental-patient-like antics. I found myself pleasantly surprised at the eclectic vocals coupled with the controlled chaotic feel of the musical foundation. Arcane Malevolence's line up consisted of one singer, one guitarist, one bass player and a drummer. Their sound was surprisingly strong, especially after LIR's triple-guitarist onslaught. The bassist did a phenomenal job of tying together all of the elements of Arcane Malevolence's style. It's hard to categorize their approach accurately besides metal unless you want to create one of those sub-sub-sub-you hopefully get the picture by now-sub-genres. The members of Arcane Malevolence frantically finesse their way through many a metal sub-genre.

Up next, thickening up the sound again with two guitars, bass, percussion and vocals, Alekhine's Gun really riled up the crowd with their female vocalist. Even through an unfortunate tuning event which caused them to edit their set, she was able to keep the crowd occupied and into the show. But no worries, just a small bump on the road to Alekhine's Gun really rocking out with some brutal material. If anything, the delay seemed to make the audience even thirstier for more metal and the testosterone infused pit went insane as soon as the band kicked back in. You could close your eyes, which I wouldn't recommend in that pit, and not be able to tell the singer was a lady. By the time they were done the pit filled 3/4ths of the floor.

And for the finale, showcasing their new album "Through Blackened Skies", No Remission put on a flawless performance full of head banging goodness. The guys were beyond ready to appease the crowds hunger for metal and you could hear it in their playing and see it through their showmanship. With a line up consisting of vocals, two guitars, bass and drums, No Remission expertly plowed through their set proving that the NY metal scene is not only alive, but thriving. It was especially interesting to see a slow motion pit during "The Hunter" grow into utter pit devastation as the song got heavier and time signatures changed. Tight, melodic, driven and thrashy as always, I could hear the full instrumentation throughout No Remission's deluge without straining my ears. Each and every riff was executed cleanly. The performance was on par with the sound of a professional recording thanks to the very talented sound lady. She did a truly marvelous job bringing all the timbres of metal together without making metal soup. By the time No Remission got to "Signal Loss", I wanted to jump into the sound cage with her for protection. The pit covered pretty much the entire floor minus the merch tables.

All of the bands in the line up for No Remission's release party complemented each other really well. I think a tour with Left in Ruins, Arcane Malevolence, Alekhine's Gun and No Remission would be received really well. It was amazingly refreshing to go to a metal show where all the bands didn't sound the same. Thanks, guys! This show was a perfect example of the variety that can be found in the NY metal scene if you know where to look.

Reviewed by Laurcifer

Photos By Bruce Jurado