SXSW Interviews: Hot Live Guys

Amongst canadian Indie labels heading south in a few days is Transistor 66 Record Co. These guys are from my local town of Winnipeg, Manitoba, and consist of the province’s top alt and rock acts.

Before they head out in a few days with the Manitoban contingent, I had a talk with Mike, the Hot Live Guys drummer who is both excited and anxious to scorch his lungs to american cigarettes and enjoy some light american beers on his first time in Texas.

Name any musical influence(s)?
Sir Lord Baltimore, Nazareth, Andrew W.K., Bachman-Turner Overdrive, Prince

What new music are you currently listening to?
This is me speaking for myself and some of these albums may not be that new: Dragonforce – “Inhuman Rampage”, Electro Quarterstaff – “Gretzky”, Landshark (Of the Forest)- “Booze Your Delusions Vol. 1 and 2”, Covert – “S/T”

Name a band (current or defunct) that would be your dream act to open for on a major tour? Van Halen.

Where and when was, according to you, the best show you ever played?
Hmmmm…….there’s two that really stand out but only because of my habit of embarrassing myself…Juno-Fest 2005…Packed show at the Albert….On-Stage Carnage-Both musically and physically (I ended up getting 30 stitches in my back due to an errant back-flip…..Also, Western Canadian Music Awards Showcase 2006…..Got us a couple of industry contacts (Notibly Brent from SXSW)….every act on our record label played that night so it was like a family reunion….Ended up naked in a tub of ice at the end of the evening (Like a family reunion)

Who, if anyone, would you like to collaborate with?
We’re not really a band that collaborates well with others. We were absent on that day in Kindergarten when they taught you how to share.

Tell us something about your band and its members and how you were all brought together to create this band.
This question makes me want to submit an artistically worded response but instead will submit “Mike’s 10-Step Guide to Forming a Band”-

1: Take 1 shitty ska-funk band and a drummer from a punk band
2: Ska-Funk band loses horns, decides to start playing REALLY riffy garage rock, Drummer leaves punk band
3: Drummer from punk band starts going to shows after a 3 year hiatus and notices that shitty ska-funk band is still around
4: Former Drummer for punk band goes to formerly ska-funk band’s show, decides they’re not as bad as they used to be
5: Former Drummer for punk band joins NOW garage rock band as roadie, tries to convince them to kick out drummer
6: Former Drummer for punk band embarrasses garage-rock band on tour by being a wee bit of a drunk
7: Former Drummer for punk band becomes drummer for garage rock band after drummer he tried to get kicked out quits
8: Transistor 66 Records signs garage-rock band after TERRIBLE performance for Hank Fest
9: Garage Rock Band and Record Label officially become “Blood Brothers” by way of a CD titled “Robbin A Bank”
10: World Conquest and Languishing Devotees follow

What’s next for Hot Live Guys?
SXSW, Touring with C’mon and Pride Tiger this summer, We’ve got a 7” project we’ve been working on for sometime, and hopefully we’ll finally go to Iceland and Julian can give the Prime Minister his guitar and I can meet Bjork

MySpace
Band Site
Transistor 66 Record Co.

 

"O Valencia" – The Uncut Version

While MTV have no problem showing people who intentionally hurt themselves for entertainment value on their channel, they apparently do have a problem with the new video from The Decemberists.

Directed by Aaron Stewart (who’s worked with the band before), the video for “O Valencia” clocks in on nearly 10 minutes, although this is probably not the (full) reason why MTV decided to cut it down to less than 5 minutes. No, I’m guessing the guns and violence had something to do with it, although with MTV you never know considering the stuff they do let through the censors.

Anyway, here is “O Valencia” in all it’s uncut glory:

 

Maximo Park to tour U.S. & Canada

In support of their newest LP, Our Earthly Pleasures, Maximo Park are coming back to North America for the first time in 2 years this July. The 14-date tour includes 3 dates in Canada and hits most major U.S. cities. No word yet on who else might be on the bill, but tickets for the various gigs go on sale this Friday, March 16th.

Our Earthly Pleasures is out on Warp May 8th.

Pre-sale tickets available here.

TOURDATES:
Jul 11 2007
Great Scotts Boston
Jul 12 2007
Webster Hall New York
Jul 13 2007
La Tulipe Montreal
Jul 14 2007
Mod Club Toronto
Jul 16 2007
Double Door Chicago
Jul 17 2007
Varsity Theatre Minneapolis
Jul 19 2007
Larimer Lounge Denver
Jul 20 2007
Club Sound Salt Lake City
Jul 22 2007
Chop Suey Seattle
Jul 23 2007
Richards on Richards Vancouver
Jul 24 2007
Doug Fir Lounge Portland
Jul 26 2007
Popscene San Francisco
Jul 27 2007
El Ray Theatre Los Angeles
Jul 28 2007
Casbah San Diego

Maximopark.com
Maximo Myspace

 

Sex Sells – Hell Bent For Leather

When I worshipped at the Judas Priest alter in the 80s, I never made any association that Rob Halford’s leather was symbolic of his sexuality or any BDSM culture. I just knew the band were at the forefront of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal and kicked fuckin’ ass! Decades later, London’s Client are strutting their stuff decked out in leather & fishnets in the video for their latest single “Zerox Machine”. I have to admit, they make my motor run a little more than Rob Halford ever did. I’m not saying this video has inspired me to rush out and buy a pair of chaps or anything…I’m just saying that leather looks better on these birds than it did on Rob (or something).

 

Love screams,"Go On, Take Everything"

A Santa Ana, Calif., drug rehabilitation center has sued Courtney Love, claiming the singer has repeatedly refused to pay her $181,000 bill for her stay there a year and a half ago.

The lawsuit, filed March 1 in Orange County Superior Court, said Love paid $10,000 when she entered Beau Monde, an oceanfront retreat in Newport Beach in August 2005, but she still owes $181,286.

“Although demanded multiple times by plaintiff, orally and in writing, none of the balance stated has been paid,” the lawsuit said.

Love’s attorney Howard Weitzman said today the lawsuit “will be resolved to the satisfaction of all parties shortly.” A phone message left for Beau Monde’s attorney was not immediately returned.

In September 2005, Love was sentenced to 180 days at a drug treatment facility for violating probation in three misdemeanor cases — one for illegal possession of painkillers, one for being under the influence of a controlled substance in public, and another for assault and battery.

Some of her time, about 11 weeks, was spent at Beau Monde, according to court documents.

From: Billboard.com

 

Sub Pop Announce New Subsidiary, Hardly Art

Sub Pop Records have announced a new subsidiary of the label, Hardly Art, which will bring Sub Pop’s distribution to smaller bands. The label already has its first band signed, Seattle’s Arthur And Yu. The band’s debut, In Camera, releases June 19.

Photo: Greg Lutze
“Hardly Art will be run on a much smaller, startup level than Sub Pop [is] currently, and it will work on a much more intimate and spontaneous level when it comes to bands and releases,” Moody explains. “So, at the beginning, we’ll be working with mostly unsigned and lesser-known bands. Given that it only involves two people and a much smaller budget, going that route makes sense.”

Arthur And Yu’s debut, according to Moody, is the epitome of why Hardly Art exists. Their Velvet Underground-inspired, experimental rock hit home for the two creators and was exactly the right sound to kick off the new label.

“Arthur And Yu were chosen as the first [band] because we loved their record and wanted to be the ones involved in putting it out,” Moody says. “Jonathan had been wanting to get the label started for a while now, but it really had to wait until we found the right band. They are local to Seattle, wonderful people and incredible musicians, and were really excited about what we were starting as a label. It doesn’t hurt that their upcoming record is fantastic. Overall, there really couldn’t be a better group to start with.”

Tracklist:
01. Absurd Heroes Manifesto
02. Come To View (Song For Neil Young)
03. Birds
04. Afterglow
05. Lobby Lights
06. A Thousand Words
07. Lion’s Mouth
08. The Ghost of Old Bull Lee
09. Half Years
10. Black Bear

Source: CMJ.com

 

Essential Listening: The Kinks

The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society, released in the autumn of 1968, failed to sell well. A collection of thematically-related vignettes assembled from songs written and recorded over the previous two years, the album lacked a viable single and seemed willfully out of touch with the social and psychedelic music popular at the time. “Village Green” is an intentional refutation of The Beatles’ Sgt. Pepper concept piece. Where The Beatles’ song cycle is full of countercultural themes and sees John, Paul, George and Ringo taking on an artificial persona as a psychedelic marching band, “Village Green” is sung from the point of view of middle-class Britishers, bewildered by the enormous social shifts of the late 60s. “God save little shops/China cups and virginity” goes the title track.

The album was commercially unsuccessful but well-received by the new underground rock press, particularly in the US, where The Kinks’ status as a cult band began to grow. Village Green is now widely considered one of the best rock records of the era, and even yielded an unlikely “hit” of sorts when the album track “Picture Book” was used as the theme music for a popular Hewlett-Packard television commercial in 2004.

Favorite songs from Entertainment!: “Picture Book”, “Starstruck”

Source: Wikipedia.org

 

Peter Hook decides to Freebass

On the heels of Damon Albarn’s ‘The Good The Bad & The Queen‘, New Order bassist Peter Hook has decided to create his own supergroup called Freebass. Yes, Freebass. Subtlety, thy name is Hook.

Said supergroup will include former Smith’s bassist & ocassional DJ Andy Rourke, current Primal Scream bassist Mani (formerly of The Stone Roses) and Hook. Vocals will come from contributors such as The Charlatans’ Tim Burgess, Oasis ne’er-do-well Liam Gallagher, Stone Roses frontman and current solo artist Ian Brown & Primal Scream’s Bobby Gillespie. The band has yet to be signed to a label, but Hook is optimistic.

From Billboard.com: “It’s great to write again. I’m really excited about it.” And how about new material for pet project New Order? “Its possible,” he says, “But I’m not too sure the climate is great for [a New Order album] at the moment.”

Billboard Article
XFM interview with Peter Hook

 

Secretly Canadian SXSW Happenings

Secretly Canadian will descend on Austin next week, to participate in the monumental sonic jubilee that is South By Southwest. SC is hosting a split showcase with sister labels Jagjaguwar and Dead Oceans on the evening of Thursday, March 15 at Mohawk:.

For more SC action, you can check out their bands at these additional performances:

David Vandervelde:
– Wed. 3/14 – Fader/Levi’s party – The Fort – 204 E. 4th St. – 5:15pm
– Thu. 3/15 – Schuba’s party – Yard Dog Folk Art Gallery – 1510 S. Congress 2:25pm
– Fri. 3/16 – “Mess With Texas” party – Red Seven (611 E. 7th St) – 3pm
– Sat. 3/17 – Shoutitoutloud music party – The Whiskey Bar (303 W. 5th St.) – 4pm

Richard Swift:
– SCD day party – Carousel Lounge (1110 E. 52nd St.) – 2:20pm

I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness:
– Friday 3/16 – Under The Radar Party – The Belmont – 5:30pm

Catfish Haven:
– Wed. 3/14 – Metro Anniv. Party – Emo’s main room – 4:20pm
– Thu. 3/15 – Rainbow by Rainbow West – Chain Drive (504 Willow St. – just south of 1st and Red River, on Town Lake) – 1:30pm
– Fri. 3/16 – Hot Freaks! Day party – Mohawk outside – 12pm

A few downloads from the Jagjaguwar bands:
The Besnard Lakes – “And You Lied To Me”, Okkervil River – “The President’s Dead” & “Black”, Ladyhawk – “War” & “Dugout”

 

Winter Kids offer a sugar coat

Drawing comparisons to Pulp, The Wedding Present & Blink 182 – all of which I find rather baffling, mind you – The Winterkids seem poised to be the next buzz band of the moment. A 5-piece of teen/twenty-somethings hailing from the countryside village of Peaslake, the Kids are releasing their first full-length, Memoirs, on April 9th through Rough Trade & Banquet Records.

Preceeding the release, the Winterkids are making a few stops in New York before playing an impossible number of shows at SXSW.

The Winterkids – Tape It
The Winterkids – All The Money

Also available is the video for the first single, ‘Tape It’ in which you can see lead singer James Snider looks roughly 12 years old. I guess the Kids part of their name is quite literal.

US Tourdates:
03-11 New York, NY Smash It Up Sundays @ Niagara
03-13 New York, NY Live From London @ Mercury Lounge
03-14 Austin, TX – SXSW Levis / Fader Party @ The Fort
03-15 Austin, TX – SXSW The Blind Pig
03-16 Austin, TX – SXSW Austin Convention Center
03-16 Austin, TX – SXSW Pangea Party @ Barcelona
03-16 Ausitn, TX – SXSW Official SXSW Showcase @ Whisky Bar
03-17 Austin, TX – SXSW The Musebox party @ Habana Annex

www.winterkidsmusic.com
www.myspace.com/thewinterkids