By mayoral decree, August 28 will officially be Kurt Vile Day in Philadelphia! On that date, Kurt will give a free solo performance in City Hall Courtyard at 5:30pm for the season finale of the City Hall Presents summer concert series. Prior to his performance, the City of Philadelphia will present Kurt with the Liberty Bell Award, the highest honor the City can bestow upon one of its citizens. This award is given only to native Philadelphians, and is presented in recognition of outstanding professional achievements and civic generosity. (More information about City Hall Presents, Philadelphia’s free weekly summer concert series, is below.)
Ushering in a summer of commemoration, we begin with the premiere of Kurt’s new video for “KV Crimes,” directed by Tom Scharpling, in which Kurt is regally paraded through the streets of his fair town (mmm, hoagies).
And finally, why not grace you with these beautiful clips of Kurt Vile and the Violators performing at KEXP:
Girl Called Alex
KV Crimes
Wakin on a Pretty Day
Full Performance
City Hall Presents is a series of free events that welcomes the full spectrum of Philadelphia’s performing arts into City Hall Courtyard. Shows are presented on Wednesdays, 5:30-6:30pm throughout the summer, and the entire concert calendar can be found by visiting http://cityhallpresents.creativephl.org. Organized by the City of Philadelphia Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy, these events aim to bring a new vibrancy to the historic building and inspire citizens to become more active in the arts. The program is made possible thanks to support from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, as part of its Knight Arts Challenge, as well as the William Penn Foundation.
Thurston Moore responded to the comments section of Brooklyn Vegan to confirm that his NEW ROCK BAND would indeed (as promised in their bio) “detonate any birthday party, wedding or hullabaloo in any country, planet or stratosphere that doesn’t support right wing extremist NRA sucking bozo-ology.”
Last weekend in Haydenville, MA, the Chelseas did just that, playing a a handsome left-winger named Trevor’s birthday party. This is the evidence:
“Empires Of Time”:
“Alighted”:
“Lip”:
Chelsea Light Moving’s debut album is out this Tuesday. Stream it over at NPR, and buy it HERE.
Because the haze of summer dayz has taken hold, it’s time to remind everyone that Lee Ranaldo starts up an East Coast tour with Wilco tomorrow night at Wolf Trap in Virginia. This summer tour has Lee in NYC next week for a Celebrate Brooklyn show at Prospect Park and a spot on the line-up at WXPN’s XPoNential Festival in Philly (technically Camden), among a number of other shows listed below.
We’re also happy to be able to share with you a brand new Rolling Stone session that Lee did with his full band (Steve Shelley, Alan Licht, and Irwin Menken). It launched today, and it’s definitely worth checking out! CLICK HERE TO DO SO
Tue, July 17 – Vienna, VA – Wolf Trap*
Wed, July 18 – Vienna, VA – Wolf Trap*
Thu, July 19 – Charlottesville, VA – nTelos Wireless Pavillon*
Sat, July 21 – Camden, NJ – XPoNential Music Festival*
Tue, July 24 – Brooklyn, NY – Celebrate Brooklyn @ Prospect Park*
Fri, July 27 – Hudson, NY – Basillia Hudson
Sat, July 28 – Cooperstown, NY – Brewery Ommegang*
Sun, July 29 – Essex Junction, VT – Midway Lawn @ Champlain Valley Expo*
Mon, July 30 – Portland, ME – SPACE Gallery
Tue, July 31 – New London, CT – Hygenic Art Park
Wed, Aug 1 – Hartford, CT – Bushnell Theatre*
Fri, Aug 3 – Rochester, NY – Highland Bowl @ Highland Park*
Sat, Aug 4 – Columbus, OH – Lifestyle Communities Pavillion*
Those of you with some sort of long-term memory will hopefully remember the previously announced Lee Ranaldo dates, but now we can reveal The Men will join to support at the London show happening this June. The Men of course have a 7″ single out on the Singles Going Home Alone series, whilst Lee is out in support of his latest album. He recently played a stripped back set for The New Yorker, performing “Off The Wall” and “Hammer Blows” (which follow the dizzying over zealous multi-camera angle interview edit).
Lee Ranaldo tour dates
(all US dates below supporting M. Ward except those marked*)
5/5 Portland, ME – State Theatre – on sale now
5/6 Burlington, VT – Higher Ground – on sale now
5/7 New Haven, CT – Toads Place – on sale now
5/8 Boston, MA – House Of Blues – on sale
5/11 New York, NY – Webster Hall
5/12 Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer – on sale now
5/13 Washington, DC – 9:30 Club – on sale now
5/15 Durham, NC – Duke Performances
5/16 Atlanta, GA – Buckhead Theatre – on sale now
5/17 Athens, GA – Georgia Theatre – on sale now
5/18 Nashville TN – Mercy Lounge*
5/19 Louisville KY – Zanzabar*
5/20 Nelsonville OH – Nelsonville Music Festival*
5/22 Chicago, IL – Vic Theatre
Mike also talks about how people see him as more fragile than he is, the way being gay affects and does not affect his music, the Hood video, and more.
Today For No One, along with Refinery 29, brings us a lovely rendition of “Love Like A River” from Father, Son, Holy Ghost. The album is on sale for $6.99 at Amazon (the sale ends tomorrow, so hurry!). The session:
As announced, Girls will release an insane new 7″ on December 6th, and you can pre-order it now.
Finally, Girls have two of their biggest ever US shows coming up soon: Tuesday December 6th at the Fonda in LA (tickets) and Saturday Jan 14th at Terminal 5 in NYC (buy tickets or win them from Refinery 29). If you live in Santa Ana, you aren’t left out, either.
