Every Chinese New Year since 2006, Fucked Up have released a 12″ single inspired by the beasts of the Chinese Zodiac.

The latest single will be Year Of The Tiger, out February 7.

Listen to the four existing Zodiac singles via the widget above, and the new one on release date.

2006: Year of the Dog (Blocks Recording Club) buy
2008: Year of the Pig (What’s Your Rupture? and Matador) buy
2009: Year of the Rat (What’s Your Rupture?) buy
2010: Year of the Ox (Merge) buy
2012: Year of the Tiger (Matador) preorder

Clocking in between 10 and 20 minutes apiece, Fucked Up’s Zodiac singles contain their most ambitious work, along with numerous and surprising guest musicians, ranging from Zola Jesus and a Toronto string quartet on Year of the Ox to Jim Jarmusch and Austra’s Katie Stelmanis on Year of the Tiger.

matadorrecords.com/fucked_up
Looking For Gold
Fucked Up on Facebook

It’s Tuesday, January 17 which means our first two releases of the New Year are out today.

First up is Intended Play, the new ultra-budget vinyl-only sampler from Matador and True Panther. The 11-song LP is $1.98 list price – you can actually order it direct for only $1.80 by clicking on the title above. It contains new tracks from THE YOUNG, CEREMONY TANLINES, LEE RANALDO, PERFUME GENIUS and STEPHEN MALKMUS – all of the above from upcoming releases except the SM track which won’t appear elsewhere, and recent hits (some of them rare) from KURT VILE, GIRLS, FUCKED UP, ESBEN & THE WITCH and COLD CAVE.

Next is the first single in our new 2012 singles club, SINGLES GOING HOME ALONE. It’s an unexpected conjunction between STEPHEN MALKMUS & THE JICKS and the legendary LA GUNS, covering each other. Hear Malkmus jam on “Wheels Of Fire,” and Tracii Guns pull out the stops on “Gorgeous Georgie.” Sleeve art at the top of the post.

It’s not too late to sign up for the singles club, which gets you six exclusive limited-edition 7″es, one every other month this year, plus a special bonus record, an exclusive tote bag and a yearlong 10% discount on all items at the Matador Store, for only $45 including shipping within the US:

SIGN UP HERE

The next two confirmed singles are from Austin’s OBN III’s on March 20, and Brooklyn’s The Men on May 8, with subsequent the singles on July 10, September 11 and November 6.

Other upcoming Matador and True Panther releases:

Feb 7 – Fucked Up – Year Of The Tiger
Feb 21 – Perfume Genius – Put Your Back N 2 It
Mar 6 – Ceremony – Zoo
Mar 20 – Tanlines – Mixed Emotions (True Panther)
Mar 20 – Lee Ranaldo – Between The Times and the Tides

matadorrecords.com
truepanther.com

Brooklyn, NY’s Tanlines will release their debut album, Mixed Emotions, on our imprint True Panther Sounds on March 20th, 2012. It was recorded in various NYC home studios and mixed in Miami by legendary mixing engineer Jimmy Douglass (Timbaland, Aaliyah, Justin Timberlake, Television, Roxy Music). Mixed Emotion’s first taste, “Brothers,” is available for download from their site or direct download below…

Tanlines- Brothers (mp3)

Anyone well-versed with New York City’s diverse music scene for the last few years knows Mixed Emotions is a long time coming. Since their first song hit the web in 2008, Tanlines – comprised of Eric Emm (vocals, guitar, keyboards) and Jesse Cohen (drums, keyboards, bass) – have been steadily releasing genius dance singles with labels across the globe, including True Panther, Young Turks and Kitsune. Their live show has taken them worldwide, playing at the likes of The Guggenheim, The Whitney and more in their hometown, as well as an opening slot on Strokes frontman Julian Casablancas’s solo tour in 2009. But it was an ill-fated European tour – filled with some of the most disappointing shows of their respective careers – that ultimately led to Mixed Emotion’s genesis. The band spent long hours driving through Europe, listening to albums by R.E.M., skate punk records from the 80’s, Born in the USA, and more. As Eric explains it, “Listening to them, I became very aware of the lasting resonance of a good song. A good song transcends production trends. That’s what we were missing, and I wanted to start making songs that would have a life of their own.”

The band returned from Europe only to be greeted with a larger problem: making such songs in Emm’s studio, which was not only the place where they created, but the place where they met prior to forming the band, would be impossible; the building that housed his eight year old studio had been sold. It is ultimately this sense of starting over that helps informs some of Mixed Emotion’s most palpable moments.

Mixed Emotions is a testament to the benefits and pitfalls of life’s changes, getting older, and being pushed out of one’s comfort zone. The band that was born out of a studio suddenly had to become, well, a band. Songs were written simply on a guitar, with the band later adding their palette of electronic and organic sounds afterwards. Emm honed his voice, a confident and tranquil baritone, and focused on lyricism, something he had not done seriously in the past. He sings stories about loss, the passage of time, and the lessons and warnings of accumulated knowledge gleaned by someone who has spent an entire lifetime in music. The process stretched the duo – Cohen likened making the album to that of making a film when it was done – and Mixed Emotions is all the better for it.

Sometimes painful, sometimes transcendent, and ultimately a very precise labor of love, Mixed Emotions simply feels vivid. Songs pulse and linger, filled with percussive textures, bright, warm synths and driving kick drums to juxtapose the album’s lyrical melancholia. The record obscures and blurs the lines between synthetic and organic, real and fake, happy and sad. It is the sound of stadium pop in small spaces. And it is one of the most remarkable debut albums you will hear in 2012.

Tanlines will be playing shows across the U.S. this spring. More info to come!

Pre-Order Mixed Emotions HERE (will ship on or before release date)

Rohnert Park, California’s CEREMONY will be releasing their fourth album, entitled Zoo, on March 6, 2012. Working with producer John Goodmanson, the band have refined their jagged sound while continuing to pursue themes of exurban alienation and confinement. Their previous three albums on the Malfunction and Bridge 9 labels are widely seen as the most compelling, unusual and progressive hardcore of the last five years, and we are incredibly excited to be working with them.

L-R: Anthony Anzaldo (guitar), Ross Farrar (vocals), Jake Casarotti (drums), Andy Nelson (bass, guitar), Justin Davis (bass)

(photo by Ceremony)

Back in December, we announced the 7″ of “Hysteria,” the lead track on the album, backed with the non-LP Urinals cover “I’m A Bug.” Now you can listen to an MP3 of “Hysteria” here:

Hysteria (192k mp3)

Also coming out on March 6 will be the second single from the album, “Adult” backed with the non-album original song “Start Over.” You can preorder it separately, or as part of one of the complicated bundle deals below.

The first 300 copies of Zoo will be on red vinyl exclusively for webstore preorders, and the first 200 copies of “Adult” will be on clear. These have already sold out. Orders going forward will get black vinyl.

Look for an announcement very soon: there’s going to be a special NYC event happening in early February.

matadorrecords.com/ceremony
Ceremony website

Since 2006, Fucked Up have released a 12″ single on each Chinese New Year. Named after the beasts in the Chinese Zodiac, “Year Of The Tiger” is the latest in the series. The song is an progressive rock anthem featuring guest vocalists Jim Jarmusch, Annie-Claude Deschênes and Austra. It was produced by Shane Stoneback (Vampire Weekend, Sleigh Bells) during the sessions for last year’s critically acclaimed rock opera David Comes To Life. The 15-minute long track features the band’s well-known layers of guitar and roaring vocals, taken to a new level with the addition of piano, Jarmusch’s dark recitations and Deschênes’s gorgeous crescendos, in this menacing but uplifting story about the predation of predators.

The B-side “ONNO” is a 22-minute long palindromic drone. It explores new realms for the band, opening up new landscapes of space and hypnotic repetition.

$1 from the sale of each record will go to Save Tigers Now.

You can preorder the 12″ from the Matador Store.

NEW BUNDLE DEAL: Get the double vinyl LP of David Comes To Life PLUS Year Of The Tiger, normally $26, for only $23. Click here

Looking For Gold
Fucked Up Facebook Page
Fucked Up Facebook Group
matadorrecords.com/fucked_up

Today we’re psyched to tell you that OLE-981 is the Matador Records & True Panther Sounds’ 2012 Intended Play Sampler hits shelves on January 14. This (insanely) budget-priced vinyl sampler showcases new tracks and now-classics from the Matador/True Panther syndicate circa 2011-2012, and much like the Cherry Red sampler from which this LP finds inspiration, is destined to rank at #1 on all music retail charts.

Oh, did we mention its costs $1.98!?!

The comp features unreleased tracks from: THE YOUNG (Austin, TX – Matador debut Spring 2012), CEREMONY (Rohnert Park, CA – Hysteria 7” coming February 2012), LEE RANALDO (from
Between the Times & The Tides, March 20), PERFUME GENIUS (sophomore album, Put Your
Back Into It, February ), STEPHEN MALKMUS & THE JICKS (unreleased track from Mirror Traffic
sessions) and True Panther bros, TANLINES.

The album also features 2011 favorites, GIRLS (from Father, Son, Holy Ghost on True Panther), KURT VILE (from So Outta Reach EP), ESBEN & THE WITCH (Hexagons EP, first time on vinyl), FUCKED UP (from the David Comes To Life companion 7″) & COLD CAVE (exclusive re-mix/remaster of the Cherish The Light Years favorite).

Revisit your favorites from 2011, and get a preview of 2012 from your friends at Matador Records and True
Panther Sounds for under two dollars!

1 THE YOUNG – Don’t Hustle For Love*
2 KURT VILE – Life’s A Beach
3 GIRLS – My Ma
4 CEREMONY – Hysteria*
5 TANLINES – TBA
6 LEE RANALDO – Off The Wall*
7 FUCKED UP – Into The Light
8 ESBEN & THE WITCH – Hexagons II
9 PERFUME GENIUS – All Waters*
10 COLD CAVE – Confetti (edit)
11 STEPHEN MALKMUS & THE JICKS – Polvo*
* unreleased

Pre-order it HERE or find it in your favorite vinyl retailer on 1/17)

With all due respect to our friends at Sub/Pop, Columbus Discount, HoZac, and I don’t know, two dozen other labels who’ve tried it, we’re rolling out a limited edition 7″ subscription series in early 2012. A number of years back, some bright Matador exec came up with the title ‘Singles Going Home Alone’ for a proposed compilation album of the label’s early one-off, long out of print singles (Mark Eitzel, Chain Gang, The Schramms, The Pastels, Fire In The Kitchen, etc.)  A few of the artists we approached politely declined (or impolitely told us to fuck off and die) and rather than repair the shattered relationships, we shelved the title.  Until once fine day last October when Robby Morris suggested we do a bunch of one off singles AGAIN, only this time we’ll try not to alienate all of the participants.

We’re planning on 6 singles over the course of 2012, but if we’re having fun with this, there’s no reason we won’t have another batch lined up for 2013. The in the series will be the long-rumored split 7″ between Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks (left) and L.A. Guns (right), with the former  covering the latter’s “Wheels Of Fire” and Tracii & Co. tackling the latter’s “Gorgeous George”.  We’ve waited nearly 23 years to tell the world L.A. Guns are Matador Recording Artists, and finally we can say it at parties without lying.

(photo by Zac Sprague)

Edition #2 will be a couple of new songs from Austin, TX’s OBN III’s whose most recent ‘The One & Only’ LP (Tic Tac Totally) has made no shortage of 2011 top ten lists.  Well, the good ones, anyway. There’s a longish interview with frontman/dictator Orville Neeley in the latest issue of Maximum Rocknroll…and if that sentence seem a tad out of place on the Matablog, well, keep in mind we just said we’re putting out a record with L.A. Guns. Surprises are relative.

Single #3 will be a new 7″ from NYC’s THE MEN, whose amazing 2nd album, ‘Leave Home’(Sacred Bones) is (again) one of the current year’s finest.  It would be the height of hyperbole to claim this record hasn’t left our turntable, though it would be completely truthful to say it has on some occasions, rolled across the room and supplanted whatever else we thought about putting on.

We’ll reveal the identities behind singles 4, 5 and 6 pretty soon.  If you wait until then, however, you run the not-so-small risk there won’t be any left.

- TAKING ORDERS NOW:

- what you get: 6 subscription only 7″es every other month in 2012, plus a special secret bonus item, a tote bag and 10% off all year long on the Matador Store (which cannot be combined with other discounts)

JANUARY 17 – Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks / L.A. Guns
MARCH 20 – OBN III’s
MAY 22 – The Men
JULY 10 – TBA
SEPTEMBER 11 – TBA
NOVEMBER 6 – TBA

- prices (all inclusive of shipping – each 7″ will be shipped out separately for release date):

$45 US
$55 Canada
$70 rest of world

Alright. Let the thoroughly off-the-mark speculation about the next 3 singles commence.

CEREMONY
“Hysteria” b/w “I’m A Bug”
OLE-982

On January 17 2012 February 7*, Rohnert Park CA’s CEREMONY will release “Hysteria“, their first recording for Matador. The 7″ is now available on the Matador store for pre-order (the first 200 orders will receive exclusive clear vinyl). The tracks will also be available for digital purchase.

Catch CEREMONY on tour in Florida next week, and keep your browser pointed at this blog and www.ceremonyhc.com for a lot more exciting news in the coming weeks.

12.8.11
Will’s Pub – Orlando, FL

Ceremony
No Friends
Khann
Demoter
Weight Of The World

12.9.11
Churchill’s Pub – Miami, FL

Ceremony
No Friends
Merchandise
Rat Bastard
Homestretch

12.10.11
Transitions Art Gallery – Tampa, FL

Ceremony
No Friends
Feral Babies

* due to delays at the pressing plant, this is now scheduled for February 7, sorry for any inconvenience

(photo by Angel Ceballos)

COMING FEBRUARY 21: The second album from Seattle’s PERFUME GENIUS, entitled Put Your Back N 2 It. Perfume Genius, aka Mike Hadreas, is a Seattle singer-songwriter whose 2010 debut Learning established him as one of the most endearing and quietly forceful performers today.

Though Learning’s voyeuristic window into Hadreas’s experiences resonated intensely with many people, Put Your Back N 2 It is much more universal, addressing intimacy, power, family, secrecy, and hope, not just through his impressionistic lyrics, but the music itself, which is as lush as Learning was stark.

Track list:

1. Awol Marine
2. Normal Song
3. No Tear
4. 17
5. Take Me Home
6. Dirge
7. Dark Parts
8. All Waters
9. Hood
10. Put Your Back N2 It
11. Floating Spit
12. Sister Song

Check out the song “All Waters” at the link below:

All Waters (192k mp3)

The album was recorded in England and Seattle with Andrew Morgan and John Goodmanson.

Perfume Genius is currently on tour with the new three-piece lineup on the East Coast of the US, with Beirut:

Monday – 05 – Asheville, NC – The Orange Peel
Wednesday – 07 – Athens, GA – The Georgia Theatre
Thursday – 08 – Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle
Saturday – 10 – Pittsburgh, PA – Altar
Sunday – 11 – Pittsburgh, PA – Altar
Tuesday – 13 – Washington, DC – 9:30 Club
Wednesday – 14 – Washington, DC – 9:30 Club

Preorder the new album from Matador
Preorder the CD from Amazon
Preorder the LP from Amazon
turnstilemusic.net/artists/perfume-genius
Perfume Genius on Facebook

The first recordings from the classic Guided By Voices lineup of Robert Pollard, Tobin Sprout, Mitch Mitchell, Greg Demos and Kevin Fennell hit the stores on November 22 with the Matador single from their upcoming self-released album “Let’s go Eat The Factory.” The single is called “The Unsinkable Fats Domino” b/w “We Won’t Apologize,” and you can download an MP3 of the A-side here:

The Unsinkable Fats Domino (192k MP3)

The single will be out on 7″ vinyl and digital single formats NOVEMBER 22.

Preorder the 7″

robertpollard.net

On October 31st*, Matador will release a charity 7″ from Philadelphia’s TV Casualty.

This is the first recorded document to be released by a collective made up of Brian Sokel (Franklin, AM/FM), Andy Nelson (Ceremony, Paint It Black), Atom Goren (Atom and His Package) & Chris Wilson (Ted Leo & the Pharmacists). Over the past few years the group has played out in and around Philly for different charitable events, assembling as The Ramones (with Rodney Anonymous), Black Flag (with Dan Yemin) and Minor Threat (with Mike McKee). Here, Ted Leo joins the band as Glen Danzig, in what else but their take on The Misfits (watch some past performances here)!

As part of Matador’s famed ELO- catalogue series (confused? consult the discography), this blood-red 7″ features covers of Children In Heat, Angelfuck, Teenagers From Mars, We Bite, Who Killed Marilyn, Some Kinda Hate. All proceeds collected on sales of this release will be donated on behalf of TV Casualty & Matador to The Attic Youth Center, Philadelphia’s only LGBTQ Youth Center.

TV Casualty’s next live date is on October 28 at The Florida Theater as part of The Fest in Gainesville, Florida. Money collected at this show will go to Occupy Philadelphia.

Pre-order the single at the Matador store now.

*The band will have copies for sale on their 10/28 show in Gainesville and you should be able to find the 7″ in your local stores around then. You can also buy the tracks digitally starting 10/31.

Following a teasing video posted last week, we’re happy to reveal details of the new Esben and the Witch digital EP Hexagons which we’re unleashing on November 7th.  Following their debut album Violet Cries that came out earlier this year, Hexagons acts as a standalone 6-track EP, seeing the band expand upon album track ’Hexagons IV’ and with these new recordings they come closer to replicating the clarity and intensity of their impassioned live shows.

Listen to the track ‘Hexagons II’ below and keep your eyes peeled for a special event happening on November 4th, the band round up the year with a few European shows including a night they’re curating at Corsica Studios on November 16th.

Tracklisting:

Hexagons I (The Fall)

Hexagons II (The Flight)

Hexagons III (The Surge)

Hexagons IV (The Still)

Hexagons V (The Cast)

Hexagons VI (The Thaw)

Upcoming live shows:

October 22nd – Swn, Cardiff, UK

November 16th – Corsica Studios, London, UK

November 18th – Festival Saint-Ghetto, Bern, Switzerland

November 19th – Amalgame, Yverdon, Switzerland

We’re proud and honored to share Girls’ new album Father, Son, Holy Ghost, streaming in its entirety thanks to our friends at The Hype Machine. Listen to the album, then pre-order it (the album is available everywhere a week from today):

Girls hit the road next week, as well:

September
Wednesday 14 - Atlanta, GA – Variety Playhouse
Thursday 15 – Asheville, NC – The Orange Peel
Friday 16 – Nashville, TN – Grimey’s (instore performance – 5PM)
Friday 16 - Nashville, TN – The Mercy Lounge
Saturday 17 – Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle
Monday 19 – Washington, DC – 9:30 Club
Tuesday 20 – Philadelphia, PA – Theatre of Living Arts
Thursday 22 – New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom
Friday 23 – New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom
Saturday 24 – Boston, MA – Paramount Center
Sunday 25 – Montreal, AL – Corona Theatre
Tuesday 27 – Toronto, ON – The Mod Club
Thursday 29 – Chicago, IL – Lincoln Hall
Friday 30 – Madison, WI – Majestic Theater

October
Saturday 01 – Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue
Tuesday 04 – Vancouver, BC – The Biltmore Cabaret
Wednesday 05 - Seattle, WA – Neptune Theatre
Thursday 06 – Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom
Saturday 08 – San Francisco, CA – Great American Music Hall
Sunday 09 – San Francisco, CA – Great American Music Hall

On November 8, Kurt Vile will be releasing a brand-new 6-song EP on the 12″ vinyl and digital formats, entitled So Outta Reach. The EP contains 5 original songs initially recorded during the sessions for Smoke Ring For My Halo but not used for the album, which were reworked with producer John Agnello this summer. In addition, the EP contains a cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “Downbound Train.”

On the same day there will be a deluxe 2-CD version of Smoke Ring For My Halo with a new color cover. The deluxe CD will include the So Outta Reach EP on a second disc, all at the same price as a regular CD.

Download new track “The Creature” here:

The Creature (192k mp3)

So Outta Reach EP track listing:

1. The Creature
2. It’s Alright
3. Life’s A Beach
4. Laughing Stock
5. Downbound Train
6. (so outta reach)

We have three preorder options, all of which come with a free poster:

Preorder the 12″ or digital EP
Preorder a special vinyl bundle of the 12″ EP plus the original vinyl LP of Smoke Ring For My Halo for only $20
Preorder the deluxe 2-CD set

Kurt Vile hits the road again with his full band starting at Austin City Limits on Friday, September, and then continuing through to the West Coast with Bright Eyes. He then plays Northeast dates with the Flaming Lips in October, followed by blowout year-end shows in New York and Philadelphia to celebrate the EP and deluxe edition release in November:

Fri – 9/16 – Austin TX – Austin City Limits
Sat – 9/17 – Austin TX – Stubb’s – Bright Eyes (ACL aftershow)
Sun – 9/18 – El Paso TX – Tricky Falls
Mon – 9/19 – Albuquerque NM – Sunshine Theatre – Bright Eyes
Wed – 9/21 – San Diego CA – SOMA – Bright Eyes
Fri – 9/23 – Los Angeles CA – Hollywood Forever – Bright Eyes
Sat – 9/24 – Las Vegas NV – Boulevard Pool at Cosmopolitan – Bright Eyes
Sun – 9/25 – Santa Barbara CA – Santa Barbara Bowl – Bright Eyes
Mon – 9/26 – Reno NV – Knitting Factory – Bright Eyes
Wed – 9/28 – Seattle WA – Paramount Theatre – Bright Eyes
Fri – 9/30 – San Francisco CA – Hardly Strictly Bluegrass
Mon – 10/24 – Portland ME – State Theater – The Flaming Lips
Tue – 10/25 – Rochester NY – Main Street Armory – The Flaming Lips
Thu – 10/27 – Norfolk VA – The NorVa – The Flaming Lips
Fri – 11/11 – New York NY – Webster Hall
Sat – 11/12 – Philadelphia PA – Union Transfer

Kurt Vile Facebook Page

We’re excited to announce that a number of our favorite catalogue releases have been reissued on 120g vinyl and are now in stock.

The following titles are now available in the Matador Store, and will be on shelves at your favorite record shops on August 9.

OLE-295-0   Belle and Sebastian - If You're Feeling Sinister*
OLE-311-0   Belle and Sebastian - Boy With The Arab Strap*
OLE-361-0   Belle and Sebastian - Tigermilk *

OLE-202-0   Cat Power - What Would The Community Think*
OLE-426-0   Cat Power - The Covers Record
OLE-754-0   Cat Power - Jukebox 

OLE-123-0   Guided By Voices - Alien Lanes*

OLE-069-0   Yo La Tengo - Painful*
OLE-371-0   Yo La Tengo - And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out* dbl LP

*includes free download of the entire album

Find these, and many other new and classic Matador, True Panther and distributed releases here. Spend over $50, and get free shipping AND while you’re at it, pick up a new Matador tote bag (cuz let’s be honest, who doesn’t love a tote? )

photo by Sandy Kim

On September 13th, 2011 San Francisco’s Girls will release their second album and third record Father, Son, Holy Ghost on our imprint, True Panther Sounds and Turnstile in the UK/Europe. The album comes two years after their debut (Album), and one year after the follow-up EP (Broken Dreams Club).

On the third anniversary of the birth of Girls as a band Christopher Owens and Chet White found themselves entering the studio to begin recording their second album. More a collection of gear than a studio, recording took place in the bowels of a San Francisco office building. The two teamed up with new drummer Darren Weiss and guitarist John Anderson assembling performances and ultimately creating new music and musical relationships to carry the band through its newest incarnation.

Girls have taken what they’ve always done best and have displayed it with amazing clarity and the strongest of intent. Classic songwriting coupled with exciting production is their way. “I’m still all the same,” Owens says. “I still know I have to do it. I still love the songs and writing songs.”

Father. Son, Holy Ghost is at times ebullient and at times absolutely devastating. A truly beautiful record and the perfect amalgamation of a band’s past and present while most importantly leaving us all excited and hungry for their future.

Click HERE for cover art.

Track Listing
1. Honey Bunny
2. Alex
3. Die
4. Saying I Love You
5. My Ma
6. Vomit
7. Just A Song
8. Magic
9. Forgiveness
10. Love Like A River
11. Jamie Marie

After updating the Complete Discography page, we discovered that the New Releases page hadn’t been updated since September 2010. Maintaining a website is a funny thing, especially if it’s packed with static templates created in May 2001, when browser windows were narrower and PHP was virtually unheard of.

We often wish other labels maintained a new releases section so that we could see what they have been putting out lately, and what’s coming up soon. However there’s not much point to having one if you don’t keep it updated.

Check out the New Releases page to catch up on Matador and True Panther releases you may have missed in 2010 and 2011, and to see what’s coming up this July and August:

New Releases page

Fucked Up‘s David Comes To Life is out today.

Get it at:

Your local indie store

The Matador Store

Amazon

iTunes

Newbury Comics (CD)

Interpunk (vinyl)

Interpunk (CD)

Check out the the album website at davidcomestolife.com.

The third proper studio album from THURSTON MOORE is available on iTunes today [US only]:

Or you can hold out until next Tuesday to buy the gatefold double LP on limited blue vinyl, only available at your local indie store or direct from us.

Demolished Thoughts was produced by Beck and featuring the Thurston on guitar and vocals, Samara Lubelski on violin, Mary Lattimore on harp, Beck on synths, vocals and bass, and Joey Waronker on percussion, among others.

Thurston will be playing his record release show in NYC at Music Hall of Williamsburg this Friday with the full band (including Samara and Mary, and adding Keith Woods on guitar, Matt Heyner on bass and John Maloney on drums). Tickets are still available.

Benediction (192k mp3)
Circulation (192k mp3)
Thurston Moore on Facebook

[edit:] and here’s an actual photo of the record in front of one of the pressing machines at United:

Starting today you can treat yourself to a preview of the Thurston Moore album Demolished Thoughts, via streams on the NPR and Guardian websites.  The album proper comes out next week, via the usual digital and CD formats and also on limited edition clear double-vinyl (from Urban Outfitters stores) or blue vinyl (from your favourite local independent retailer or the Matador store).

Thurston plays live this Friday at Williamsburg Hall of Music and then will be playing in-store at Other Music (NY) on the eve of the album’s release. After that he plays 3 shows in Europe before returning for more US dates and shows with Kurt Vile, all of which are listed below:

Thurston Moore dates :

Friday, May 20 – Music Hall Of Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY

Monday, May 23rd – Other Music in-store, NYC

May 28th – Paris, France – Le Grande Halle (Villette Sonique Festival) *playing a non-Demolished Thoughts set

May 29th – Brussels, Belgium – AB Concerts *playing a Demolished Thoughts based set

May 30th – London, UK – Union Chapel *playing a Demolished Thoughts based set

Sat, June 25, Solid Sound Festival, North Adams, MA

Sunday, June 26, Solid Sound Festival, North Adams, MA
Friday, July 15, Pitchfork Festival, Chicago, IL
Saturday, July 16, High Noon, Madison, WI (tickets on sale April 29 at 10am)

Thurston Moore / Kurt Vile & The Violators / Hush Arbors dates

7/18 Minneapolis, MN – Varsity Theatre (tickets, on sale April 29, noon))
7/21 Vancouver, BC – Rickshaw Theatre (tickets, on sale April 29)
7/23 Portland, OR – Alladin Theatre (tickets)
7/26 San Francisco, CA – Great American Music Hall (tickets)
7/28 Los Angeles, CA – Troubadour (tickets)
7/29 Los Angeles, CA – Troubadour (tickets)
7/30 San Diego, CA – Casbah (tickets)

The fourth (and final) part of Fucked Up’s David Comes To Life is out now as a download for Buy Early Get Now people:

ACT FOUR: A revelation from Vivian sheds more light on Veronica’s death; Octavio and Vivian explain their motives, and David is reborn.

14. I Was There
15. Inside A Frame
16. The Recursive Girl
17. One More Night
18. Lights Go Up

That completes the early part of this thing – BEGN fans will also be getting four 7″ singles with extra tracks from the album sessions, as well as a poster and bonus MP3s. It’s not too late to join up if you want these things – simply preorder from the Matador Store, or locate a more convenient mail order or retail location on the map at buyearlygetnow.com.

You can also do a simple regular preorder for just the LP, CD or digital, or just wait for the album to come out on June 7.

More details on the David Comes To Life album and story at davidcomestolife.com.

Today Fucked Up release part 3 of David Comes To Life for Buy Early Get Now participants.

Most of the album’s 18 tracks have now gone out to BEGN fans:

ACT ONE: Love, then tragedy, strikes the town.

1. Let Her Rest
2. Queen Of Hearts
3. Under My Nose
4. The Other Shoe

ACT TWO: David loses Veronica, and then himself, as he succumbs to guilt and despair.

5. Running On Nothing
6. Remember My Name
7. A Slanted Tone
8. Serve Me Right

ACT THREE: Another character is revealed, putting the responsibility for Veronica’s death into question.

9. Truth I Know
10. Life In Paper
11. Ship Of Fools
12. A Little Death

Act Four, containing tracks 13-18, comes out for BEGN participants tomorrow morning. To join, preorder from us or via another store (click the link at top to find one convenient to you) and buy the BEGN package – you get lots of extras like bonus 7″es, a poster and more.

Fucked Up are currently touring Europe.

David comes to life for real on June 7.

davidcomestolife.com
Looking For Gold
Fucked Up on Facebook

Part two of Fucked Up’s David Comes To Life is out TODAY for Buy Early Get Now customers.

They’re getting the next 4 songs on the record in MP3, FLAC or stream according to their choice, along with PDFs of the lyrics from the booklet. Parts 3 and 4 come out tomorrow and Friday.

It’s not too late to preorder for Buy Early Get Now – not only will you get the record in early digital form, you still get the physical format of your choice along with bonus MP3s, four unreleased 7″es, a poster and more. Go to buyearlygetnow.com to find a convenient mail order source (including the Matador Store), or a brick-and-mortar retailer near you, to place your preorder.

For everyone else, the album is out June 7, and you can have a sip of the juice by checking out the four free pre-release singles.

davidcomestolife.com
Looking For Gold
Fucked Up on Facebook

This is it – the culmination of four pre-release singles from Fucked Up’s upcoming album David Comes To Life. “Queen Of Hearts” sets the stage for the 18-track mega-opus, a story of love, death and redemption:

Queen Of Hearts (192k MP3)

You can download the first three singles here, here and here, if you missed them. If you’ve listened to all of them, you now have had a pretty good look into the depths of the record. Starting next Tuesday, May 10, Buy Early Get Now customers can download the album in four parts, one per day. For everyone else, the album comes out on June 7.

The band embark on their European dates, starting in the UK, this Friday:

May

6th – White Rabbit, Plymouth – UK (tickets)

7th – Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff – UK (tickets) *MATINEE SHOW

7th – The Croft, Bristol – UK

8th – Institue, Birmingham – UK

9th – The Well, Leeds – UK

10th – Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh – UK (tickets)

11th – The Cluny, Newcastle – UK (tickets)

12th – Future Sonic – Sound Control, Manchester – UK

13th – Vera, Gronigen – Netherlands (tickets)

14th – 013 Small Hall, Tilburg – Netherlands

15th – Melkweg, Amsterdam – Netherlands (tickets)

16th – Festaal Kreuzberg, Berlin – Germany (tickets)

17th – Underground, Cologne – Germany (tickets)

18th – Batofar, Paris – France

19th – Trix, Antwerp – Belgium (tickets)

20th – Stag and Dagger @ Village Underground, London – UK (tickets)

21st – Liverpool Sound City @ Kazimir, Liverpool – UK (tickets)

and announce June-July dates in North America:

Sat-Jun-4 Houston, TX – Free Press Summer Fest
Sun-Jun-5 Austin, TX – Mohawk – Chaos in Tejas
Thu-Jun-23 New York, NY – Terminal 5 *
Fri-Jun-24 Boston, MA – Royale †
Sun-Jun-26 Philadelphia, PA – First Unitarian Church †
Mon-Jun-27 Washington, DC – Rock and Roll Hotel †
Tue-Jun-28 Raleigh, NC – Kings Barcade †
Wed-Jun-29 Atlanta, GA – The Earl †
Thu-Jun-30 Nashville, TN – Exit / In †
Fri-Jul-1 St. Louis, MO – Firebird †
Sat-Jul-2 Chicago, IL – Lincoln Hall †
Sun-Jul-3 London, ON – Call the Office
Sun-Jul-31 Montreal, QC – Osheaga Festival

* with Dinosaur Jr. and OFF!
† with JEFF the Brotherhood

Keep your eyes on this space for more Fucked Up summer touring news.

For more information on the album, visit:

davidcomestolife.com
Looking For Gold
Join the Fucked Up group on Facebook

As announced last week, our ninth Buy Early Get Now promotion goes live today, for the new Fucked Up album, David Comes To Life.

You can preorder NOW via mail order from the Matador Store, preorder in person or mail order from any participating retailer on this map, or if you are in the UK or Europe, from our UK store.

Wherever you preorder, you will be given a code that lets you log in to buyearlygetnow.com, where you can download your extras and early album stream/download. If you preorder physical goods, those will be available for you to pick up at the store you bought it from, or shipped to your house if you’ve mail ordered, according to the schedule below:

NOW Instant download of 5 non-album tracks plus the 3 digital singles already released
MAY 10-13 (EARLY) Full 192k album stream and high-quality album download in 4 parts, one per day
JUNE 7 (RELEASE DATE) Pick up the physical album and poster at the store you preordered from, or if you mail ordered, delivered to your door, plus a download of the Record Store Day Exclusive ‘David’s Town’ LP
JUNE 28 The 4 bonus 7″es are available for pick up / delivered to your door (or as MP3s/FLACs if you ordered the all-digital package)

In addition, we released the third single from the album (of 4), “Ship Of Fools,” today. The first 30 people to respond to a Facebook post / tweet made at noon yesterday were overnighted CDRs of the track:

Ship Of Fools (192k mp3)

Digital single #4 and last, “Queen of Hearts,” will come out on May 3.

Fucked Up on Facebook
davidcomestolife.com
Looking For Gold

Today Fucked Up release the second of four singles from the upcoming album David Comes To Life. Entitled “A Little Death,” the song is track 13 out of 18. Its urgent tone plays against an underlying tale of resignation and defeat, and showcases a different side of this insanely multilayered album from the first single released a couple of weeks ago.

A Little Death (192k mp3)

Appropriately enough, the band will be celebrating the release of this (sad?) single with a free show at the ACE Hotel in Palm Springs after Coachella ends tonight. They will be performing multiple songs from the new album. Doors open at midnight. Come and get a free postcard containing more information on the story.

If you can’t make it out to the desert, catch them at the Echoplex in LA tomorrow night. Tickets are only $5.

* To avoid confusion, these singles are DIGITAL singles. There will be plenty of REAL singles coming for you collectors.

Stay tuned for the release of single number 3 on Tuesday, April 26.

davidcomestolife.com
lookingforgold

To celebrate the release of the second of four singles from their upcoming album David Comes To Life, Fucked Up will be playing a midnight show at the Ace Hotel in Palm Springs on Friday, April 15. This is of course during the weekend of the Coachella Festival. The digital single is called “A Little Death” and will be available both here on the Matablog and on iTunes on that Friday.

See you there!

To be perfectly frank, we thought about blowing off Record Store Day this year. It’s not that we don’t support record stores – far from it, it’s what 37 of 38 employees prefer – but the huge glut of supposedly limited-edition releases, the scrum to get to the counter in the morning, and then the instant reappearance of many of the records on eBay at inflated sums are all an unintended and unwelcome side-effect of the event.

That said, we couldn’t help ourselves, and neither could three of our artists, so we proudly announce the following limited-edition items. They’re all awesome, they’re all limited, and if you don’t succeed on getting your hands on them on Record Store Day, just remember that the prices on eBay will (most likely) come down over time.

SO, on Saturday, April 16, Matador will have the following RSD exclusives:

From Byrdesdale Garden City in the UK comes the compilation album DAVID’S TOWN. Featuring 11 unreleased tracks from local bands including Gacy and the Boys, Animal Man, Grain and Hateful Coil, in styles varying from DIY to post-punk to power pop, this limited edition from FU-Discs was recorded in Byrdesdale between 1976 and 1979 and not released until now. An essential document of a thriving scene.

Next comes the new 7″ single from THE NEW PORNOGRAPHERS, “Moves.” Currently moving up the radio charts, and of course featured in Tom Scharpling’s genius video for the track, it comes with the unreleased B-side “Drug Deal Of The Heart,” recorded at the sessions for the album Together. (Note: the band is playing Coachella on RSD weekend, and then will tour out of there through April and May.)

Finally we have the new 12″ from ESBEN AND THE WITCH, the great trio from Brighton, UK – many of you will have seen one of their great shows at SXSW this month. They just wrapped up their US tour and returned to their homeland. The single is the radio edit of “Chorea” and features a remix of their pounding classic “Eumenides” by Stuart Braithwaite of MOGWAI, along with an entirely unreleased 18-minute version of “Corridors” recorded for The Creators Project and only played at a special installation in London for Karl Sadler‘s Lit Forest. (Note: Esben return to the road in the UK starting this Friday.)

As usual, we will be taking down our webstore in observation of Record Store Day. Get out there, get in line, and spend some money, goddammit!!!

Right from the start, Toronto’s Fucked Up have been pushing musical and conceptual boundaries. Their third album, the 18-song, 78-minute David Comes To Life is a rock opera, an album set to a play. Though no less monumental, it is far more melodic than their breakthrough The Chemistry of Common Life. There are more female vocals, which work in perfect contrast to Damian Abraham’s highly effective wounded bull growl. The band sound tighter, with more space for the flourishes and imaginative songwriting that entwine their love of fey British indie pop with heavy riffing, and some genuinely twisted turns. Perhaps most grippingly, the triple-guitar interplay between Mike Haliechuk, Josh Zucker and Ben Cook has risen to symphonic levels. They channel musicians from Angus Young, Pete Townshend and Noel Gallagher to Bob Stinson and Lyle Preslar with ease and grace.

As for the story – more on that to come.

Here is the first of four DIGITAL singles that will be released from the album leading up to its June 7 release date. It’s entitled The Other Shoe, and you can get it here:

The Other Shoe (192k MP3)

photo by Daniel Boud

The band will also tour Europe and the UK around release, a full list of dates are below.

May

6th – White Rabbit, Plymouth – UK (tickets)

7th – Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff – UK (tickets) *MATINEE SHOW

7th – The Croft, Bristol – UK

8th – Institue, Birmingham – UK

9th – The Well, Leeds – UK

10th – Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh – UK (tickets)

11th – The Cluny, Newcastle – UK (tickets)

12th – Future Sonic – Sound Control, Manchester – UK

13th – Vera, Gronigen – Netherlands (tickets)

14th – 013 Small Hall, Tilburg – Netherlands

15th – Melkweg, Amsterdam – Netherlands (tickets)

16th – Festaal Kreuzberg, Berlin – Germany (tickets)

17th – Underground, Cologne – Germany (tickets)

18th – Batofar, Paris – France

19th – Trix, Antwerp – Belgium (tickets)

20th – Stag and Dagger @ Village Underground, London – UK (tickets)

21st – Liverpool Sound City @ Kazimir, Liverpool – UK (tickets)

davidcomestolife.com
Looking For Gold

As we speak, our friends at NPR Music are sharing ‘Smoke Ring For The Halo’ with the world (it’s in stores next Tuesday). Head on over there to listen to the entire album, and don’t forget to pre-order the album now to receive a 15% discount.

And as we’ve mentioned, Kurt’s about to engage in some heavy touring this Spring with an in-store tour that commences tomorrow:

03/01 Boston, MA – Newbury Comics (Newbury Street store)
03/02 Washington, DC – Red Onion Records and Books
03/02 Baltimore, MD – Sound Garden
03/04 Philadelphia, PA – AKA Music
03/08 Brooklyn, NY – Academy LPs (with Northampton Wools)
03/08 New York, NY – Generation Records
03/08 New York, NY – Other Music
03/10 Ithaca, NY – Castaways  (with J Mascis)
03/11 Toronto, Ontario – The Great Hall (Canadian Music Fest)  (with J Mascis)
03/12 Kingston, Ontario – The Mansion
03/13 Burlington, VT – Monkey House
03/14 Milford, CT – Daniel Street
03/19 Austin, TX – Ground Control Showcase at Auditorium Shores (SXSW)
03/22 Brattleboro, MA – Headroom Stages  (with J Mascis)
03/23 Philadelphia, PA – World Cafe Live  (with J Mascis)
03/24 New York, NY – Mercury Lounge  (with J Mascis)
03/25 Brooklyn, NY – Music Hall of Williamsburg  (with J Mascis)
03/26 Boston, MA – Brighton Music Hall  (with J Mascis)
03/28 Red Hook, NY – Bard College
03/29 Pittsburgh, PA – Andy Warhol Museum
03/30 Cleveland Heights, OH – Grog Shop  (with J Mascis)
03/31 Ann Arbor, MI – Blind Pig  (with J Mascis)
04/01 Chicago, IL – Subterranean  (with J Mascis)
04/02 Minneapolis, MN – 7th Street Entry  (with J Mascis)
04/03 Iowa City, IA – The Mill
04/05 Gambier, OH – Kenyon College
04/06 Nashville, TN – The End
04/07 Atlanta, GA – The Earl  (with J Mascis)
04/08 Athens, GA – Melting Point  (with J Mascis)
04/09 Asheville, NC – Grey Eagle  (with J Mascis)
04/10 Carrboro, NC – Cat’s Cradle  (with J Mascis)
04/21 Los Angeles, CA – The Echo
04/22 San Francisco, CA – Bottom of the Hill
04/23 Portland, OR – Bunk Bar
04/24 Seattle, WA – Sunset Tavern
04/25 Vancouver, British Columbia – Waldorf Hotel
05/11 Berlin, Germany – Festaal Kreuzberg
05/15 Utrecht, Netherlands – Tivoli
05/19 London, England – Corsica Studios
05/20 Liverpool, England – Sound City Festival
05/21 Glasgow, Scotland – Stag & Dagger Festival @ Captains Rest
05/25-29 Barcelona, Spain – Primavera Sound Festival
06/30-7-3 Roskilde, Denmark – Roskilde Festival

photo borrowed from maryrehak‘s flickr