Pitchfork Festival: Set Times Revealed! Tix Going Fast!

Friends, music lovers, citizens of the internet: the 2008 Pitchfork Music Festival draws nigh! Today we're pleased to present the set times for all the acts primed to invade Chicago's Union Park July 18-20. Grab a pencil, bust out the PDA, or hit the "print" button and have a look:

A = Aluminum Stage; B = Balance Stage; C = Connector Stage

Friday, July 18 (in conjunction with All Tomorrow's Parties/Don't Look Back):

6:00 p.m. Mission of Burma performing Vs. (C)
7:15 p.m. Sebadoh performing Bubble and Scrape (C)
8:30 p.m. Public Enemy performing It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (A)

Saturday, July 19:

12:30 p.m. Boban i Marko Markovic Orkestar (B)
1:00 p.m. Titus Andronicus (C)
1:25 p.m. A Hawk and a Hacksaw (B)
1:30 p.m. Jay Reatard (A)
2:00 p.m. Caribou (C)
2:20 p.m. Icy Demons (B)
3:00 p.m. Fleet Foxes (A)
3:15 p.m. Fuck Buttons (B)
4:00 p.m. Dizzee Rascal (C)
4:15 p.m. The Ruby Suns (B)
5:00 p.m. Vampire Weekend (A)
5:20 p.m. Elf Power (B)
6:00 p.m. !!! (C)
6:25 p.m. Extra Golden (B)
7:00 p.m. The Hold Steady (A)
7:30 p.m. Atlas Sound (B)
8:00 p.m. Jarvis Cocker (C)
8:25 p.m. No Age (B)
9:00 p.m. Animal Collective (A)

Sunday, July 20:

12:30 p.m. Mahjongg (B)
1:00 p.m. Times New Viking (C)
1:25 p.m. High Places (B)
1:30 p.m. Dirty Projectors (A)
2:00 p.m. Boris (C)
2:20 p.m. HEALTH (B)
3:00 p.m. The Apples in Stereo (A)
3:15 p.m. King Khan & the Shrines (B)
4:00 p.m. Les Savy Fav (C)
4:15 p.m. El Guincho (B)
5:00 p.m. Ghostface Killah & Raekwon (A)
5:20 p.m. Occidental Brothers Dance Band International (B)
6:00 p.m. M. Ward (C)
6:25 p.m. The Dodos (B)
7:00 p.m. Spiritualized (A)
7:30 p.m. Bon Iver (B)
8:00 p.m. Dinosaur Jr. (C)
8:25 p.m. Cut Copy (B)
9:00 p.m. Spoon (A)

And for the cell-phone savvy, a few perks, courtesy of Boost Mobile: text "Pitchfork" to 6509, and you'll get a full Pitchfork Music Festival schedule. Text the name of your favorite fest act (i.e., "Les Savy Fav", "Dirty Projectors") to 65095, and you'll receive an alert 15 minutes before that act goes on. Ain't technology grand?

Only individual day tickets for the 2008 Pitchfork Music Festival remain, and they're going fast! Snag yours while you still can via TicketWeb for the sweet price of $30 each.

Of course these pages have been rife with Pitchfork Music Festival extracurriculars in recent weeks, so here's a quick recap:

-- The 2008 Pitchfork Music Festival Sampler, featuring MP3s from 25 festival acts, is available for free download via eMusic now through August 1.

-- On Thursday, June 17, the Pitchfork Music Festival and the Future of Music Coalition present a panel discussion of It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back featuring Public Enemy's own Bomb Squad members Hank and Keith Shocklee and "Media Assassin" Harry Allen, along with activist/scholar/filmmaker Kembrew McLeod. Details and RSVP info for the free event can be found here.

-- That same evening (June 17), Fleet Foxes, Extra Golden, A Hawk and a Hacksaw, and Boban Markovic will play the Pitchfork Music Festival Preview Night at Chicago's Millennium Park, a free show co-presented by the park's Music Without Borders series and the festival. Details here.

-- The "Audible Architecture: Chicago Nightclubs at Noon" free lunchtime concert series continues this Monday (June 30) with Killer Whales, and keeps rolling through late August.

-- Finally, have you checked out the festival website yet? Pretty much anything you'd ever want to know about the Pitchfork Music Festival awaits, just a link away.

See you in a few weeks!

Matthew Dear, Carl Craig, Kelley Polar Cover Bowie

In the vein of Controversy, the Prince covers compilation they released earlier this year, the folks at Rapster have assembled another group of artists to pay tribute to some musician guy: this time Scarlett Johansson backing vocalist David Bowie.

Matthew Dear, Carl Craig, Kelley Polar, Au Revoir Simone, Joakim, and the Thing are among the artists who cover the Thin White Duke on Life Beyond Mars: Bowie Covered. In addition to songs from Low, Hunky Dory, and Scary Monsters, the compilation features material from lesser-known gems such as the 1986 soundtrack to Labyrinth, which features Bowie's awesome star turn as Jareth the Goblin King.

Life Beyond Mars is available on iTunes now, and will hit shops in CD format July 14. [MORE...]

Drag City Issues Jim O'Rourke Mix of Red Krayola LP

Photo by Shirley O'Houghlin

As a producer, Jim O'Rourke is no stranger to putting his distinctive stamp on a record, but as a songwriter and bandleader, the Red Krayola's Mayo Thompson is used to having the final say when it comes to his music. Thus, O'Rourke's mix of the Red Krayola's 1999 album Fingerpainting fell by the wayside when Thompson wasn't feeling it.

But wouldn't you know it? Almost a decade after the original record came out, Thompson revisited O'Rourke's mix of Fingerpainting and liked it. Thus, Drag City is reissuing the record in its O'Rourke-ified form under the name Fingerpointing. Like the original, Fingerpointing juts noise freakouts up against more traditional songs and features the writing and/or playing contributions of Thompson, Frederick Barthelme, David Grubbs, and Minutemen drummer George Hurley, among others.

Drag City will release the limited edition Fingerpointing on September 23.

A couple months before, on July 5, Mayo Thompson will play his first ever solo show at St. Cecilia's Hall in Edinburgh, Scotland. The show takes place as part of Three Blows, a self-proclaimed "weekend of all-sound acoustic performance by contemporary visual artists and musicians." On Thompson's same bill are Tattie Toes, Correcto, and Richard Youngs, while the next night of the festival features Sarah Ketchington, Tony Swain, Rude Pravo, and Keith Rowe. Also during that Three Blows weekend, Thompson and Rowe will participate in an event called "Talking About Music", which from its name sounds like...a panel discussion about music.

What's more, Thompson and the Red Krayola will play London's Somerset House on July 20, sharing the bill with Joanna Newsom. This marks the first Red Krayola gig in London in some 20 years. [MORE...]

Sea and Cake Ring the Alarm on New Album

The Sea and Cake are pretty laidback guys, but they've picked up their one-album-every-three-years pace for the follow-up to last year's Everybody. Rather than spending time between records on various solo and side projects, the members of Sea and Cake stuck together and plowed straight ahead.

The smooth Chicago post-rockers already have their next record in the can, and it's called Car Alarm.

This will be the Sea and Cake's seventh full-length record, and Thrill Jockey will release it October 21. [MORE...]

Neko Case, M. Ward Guest on New Giant Sand LP
Along with Isobel Campbell, Under Byen frontwoman

For Provisions, Howe Gelb's first LP under the Giant Sand umbrella since 2004's Is All Over The Map, a few ground rules were apparently set. First, the guest stars had to be slammin', and indeed they are. Neko Case, M. Ward, Isobel Campbell, and Henriette Sennenvaldt of Under Byen all lend a hand on the new set. The second condition? Save Gelb, all the other Giant Sand players had to be Danish. And so it is, as great Danes Thøger T. Lund, Peter Dombernowsky, and Anders Pedersen help to round out this partcular incarnation of Giant Sand. And the third? It had to come out September 2 from Yep Roc. Provisions met.

I guess laying a little low might have been another condition of Gelb's, as both he by his lonesome and Giant Sand proper have but a few dates coming up. [MORE...]

Re-Up Gang LP Due in August, Clipse in November

If you're expecting to stroll up to your local mixtape dude August 5 to land yourself a copy of that new Re-Up Gang disc, you may find yourself the recipient of a puzzled look. Indeed, the next release from the lyrically venomous VA-to-PA supergroup featuring Malice and Pusha T of Clipse and Philly MCs Ab-Liva and Sandman will in fact be traveling through some atypically traditional channels to get to your ears.

Clipse Presents: Re-Up Gang is due in stores August 5 from Koch Records. The disc sports nine new songs-- including the recently Forkcasted "Fast Life", produced by Scott "Mayor of Clowntown" Storch-- and a trio of previously unreleased remixes of cuts from the fab free-to-download We Got It for Cheap, Vol. 3 mixtape they laid on us this winter. Oh, and lest you forgot, British soul singer Joss Stone was at least at one point slated to appear on the set, though there's no mention of her involvement in the recent press material.

Clipse, meanwhile, are still busy working up their third LP, now slated for a November release on their new label Sony/Columbia. I'll believe it when I own it.

Denali Reunite, Plan Hometown Comeback Gig

With band members' other projects (Engine Down, Ambulette) effectively kaput, Richmond, Virginia's Denali-- who parted ways back in 2004-- have decided to reunite.

Maura Davis, Keeley Davis, Cam DiNunzio, and Jonathan Fuller will consummate their comeback with a special reunion gig, going down July 5 at Richmond's the National. The band plans to blast through selections from its self-titled debut and 2003's The Instinct, as well as at least one new tune. For a little teaser video of the reunited Denali rehearsing, go here.

In other news from the orbit of Denali, defunct Maura Davis-led rockers Ambulette hope to have a posthumous release out later this year. The Davis siblings also teamed not too long ago as Glös, issuing their debut LP, Harmonium, last year.

Bjork Cancels Show, Gig With Sigur Ros to Be Webcast
Sigur Ros add fall shows in the UK, France

Tomorrow's Náttúra concert at Reykjavik's Laugardalur Park is an outdoor event aimed at boosting awareness of Icelandic environmental issues (specifically, "the impact of the growing aluminum smelting activity on Iceland's natural landscape," according to a press release). It's being touted as one of the largest concerts in Iceland's history, and it features some of the country's brightest musical stars: Björk, Sigur Rós, and Ölöf Arnalds.

And for a few hours tomorrow, the cause of preserving Iceland's environment will become the world's cause, as the entirety of the Náttúra proceedings will be webcasted live via National Geographic's Nat Geo Music website. The event is set to take place from 7 PM-12 AM local time, or 3-8 PM ET in the U.S. You can also buy ringtones to help support the cause.

For Björk's thoughts about the concert, go here.

After meeting up tomorrow, Björk and nudists of note Sigur Rós will part ways to tackle the rest of their respective summer tour itineraries.

One stop that Björk won't be making as planned: A July 5 appearance at Hertfordshire, England's Wild in the Country Festival. According to NME.com, a statement made on Björk's behalf says that she's pulling out "due to the volatile nature of this event. Bjork is extremely disappointed that this show will now no longer go ahead." Apparently "organisers Geoff Oakes and Vince Power for [event organizers] Renaissance have been unable to secure any staging, sound and lighting for this festival making it impossible for the headline artists to perform and are unable to fulfill their contractual obligations to all of the artists contracted to perform at their event."

Björk's people urge would-be festgoers to seek a refund, and Oakes is quoted as saying that they "hope to be able to offer refunds to as many people as possible." [MORE...]

Death Vessel Finally Reveals Sub Pop Debut, Tours

Photo by David Garland

Unusually high-pitched singer Joel Thibodeau signed his one-man outfit Death Vessel to Sub Pop way back in 2006. At that time, the follow-up to his 2005 debut Stay Close was expected in early 2007, but you know how these things go. Here Joel is now with his new album and first for Sub Pop: Nothing Is Precious Enough for Us, due August 19.

Death Vessel has two dates in July, but his full-blown North American tour starts after the record comes out with an August 27 show in Montreal. [MORE...]

The Stooges Line Up Summer Tour

For most of 2008, Iggy Pop and his Stooges have been content laying low while their current bassist Mike Watt (Minutemen/fIREHOSE) spends his days kayaking, traveling, and collaborating with just about everyone he meets on the way. Besides a brief appearance to cover Madonna at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in March, we haven't heard much from Iggy and co. But now, they're gearing up to headline a bunch of festivals and European clubs this summer.

The Stooges' summer tour begins July 4 in Norway, and their itinerary has them busy until the end of September. For an insider's look at the tour, make sure to peep Mike Watt's tour diary.

Touring with the Stooges means Watt's schedule is free of dates with his numerous other groups, but he did have time recently to form a duo called Cuz with yet another Go! Team member: Sam Dook, who plays drums in Cuz. [MORE...]

Tom Waits Gets His Own Bus Tour, Key to El Paso

Photo by Joe Odea

Tom Waits is already this close to being a character in a ghost story, so a bus tour of the gruff-voiced singer's old haunts makes a certain kind of sense. The folks at L.A. bus adventure company Esotouric know this, and thus, they've created a tour called "Crawling Down Cahuenga: Tom Waits' Los Angeles".

"Crawling Down Cahuenga", which takes place August 30, is a tour of the bars, restaurants, venues, studios, and other hangouts Waits frequented during his "formative creative life" in the 1970s and 80s, according to a press release.

Leading the tour will be David Smay, author of the 33 1/3 book on Waits' Swordfishtrombones, and Kim Cooper, Esotouric guide and the author of the 33 1/3 book on Neutral Milk Hotel's In the Aeroplane Over the Sea. After they finish the tour, Smay and Cooper will host a group reading at Metropolis Books where Smay will also sign copies of his Swordfishtrombones book.

For info on how to sign up for the "Crawling Down Cahuenga: Tom Waits' Los Angeles" tour, visit esotouric.com.

Waits, meanwhile, has a little tour of his own-- the "Glitter and Doom Tour"-- to keep him busy this summer. And it turns out L.A. isn't the only city celebrating the troubadour. At Waits' show on June 20, El Paso, Texas presented the singer with a key to the city.

During Waits' set at the city's Plaza Theatre that night, a police officer walked onstage in uniform, prompting Waits to respond, "I paid all those tickets," and, "She was dead when I got there," according to a press release. Then, an El Paso Councilwoman arrived onstage and handed Waits a plaque with his key. The press release notes Waits was touched and said, "This is a first for me, a real first." [MORE...]

R.E.M., Stooges, Common Play Doctor Loft 05:00 Fest
Plus: Gossip, Akon, Pete Rock, Editors, Brakes

The Doctor Loft 05:00 festival in Castelló d'Empúries, Spain starts early: 5 a.m., to be exact (and true to its name). But what could possibly get folks to the Empuriabrava marina area that early on the morning of July 6? How about a lineup that includes R.E.M., Iggy & the Stooges, Common, Akon, the Gossip, Brakes, Editors, Luciano, Felix da Housecat, the Whip, and Dominique Costa, among others?

Yes, Akon substituted for the ubiquitous Jack Johnson will do it. Thanks, Doc Loft!

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.)