Matador Records | News November 2003

Matador Records and XL Recordings are pleased to announce that we will jointly be releasing the acclaimed debut album by Dizzee Rascal, 'Boy In Da Corner' in the US this January.

18 years of age and hailing from East London, Dizzee's unique hybrid of hip-hop, drum & bass and UK garage coupled with his explosive real-life tales of street crime, poverty, sex and guns, are a combination unlike any MC we've heard --- underground or over. 'Boy In Da Corner' has been a major UK hit since its release last summer, and this past September, Dizzee was awarded the UK's Mercury Music Prize, beating out the likes of Coldplay, Radiohead and the Darkness. Dizzee has been hailed as "the most original and exciting artist to emerge from dance music in a decade" (Alex Petridas, The Guardian), the NME's Louis Pattison calling 'Boy In Da Corner', "one of the most assured debut albums of the last five years." If anything, we think these guys are are understating things.

Stream some songs from the XL website. More Dizzee news to come.

The iTunes Music Store - just like buying records, only much less to hold and stare at
Matador Records is pleased to announce that major chunks of its extensive catalog --- as well as new releases --- are now available from Apple's iTunes Music Store.

At an ala carte price of $0.99 per song or for $9.99 for an entire album, cultured music fans in the U.S. (dummies too) can download AAC files of tracks by Interpol, Cat Power, Yo La Tengo, Stephen Malkmus, Mogwai, Guided By Voices, Pretty Girls Make Graves and countless others, playable via iTunes 4 on their Mac or Windows PC's, and through Apple's iPod. Said tracks can also be burned to CDR's, if you're into that kind of thing.

In the months ahead, we hope to make exclusive materials available via the iTunes Music Store; previews from forthcoming studio albums, outtakes, live tracks, demo versions, etc.

Seachange

Matador's second-newest signing have completed work on their full-length debut CD/LP, 'Lay Of The Land', tentatively scheduled for worldwide release in early 2004. The Nottingham sextet will be releasing their first Matador output, the CDEP/7" 'Glitterball' (listen; preorder), on November 24. A short UK tour happens this month, with more shows planned in the new year.

Arab Strap
Though last Spring's tour with Bright Eyes did immeasurable good in introducing smart folks to the music of Arab Strap, the band, Matador, their booking agent and the great people at the U.S. State Department have all decided that a headlining tour is in order.İ

11/15 - Chicago IL - The Abbey Pub
11/16 - Minneapolis MN - 400 Bar
11/18 - Denver CO - Climax Lounge
11/21 - Portland OR - Danteís
11/22 - Seattle WA - Graceland
11/23 - Vancouver BC - Richardís on Richards
11/25 - San Francisco CA - Great American Music Hall
11/26 - Los Angeles CA - Troubadour
11/29 - Austin TX - Emoís Alternative
11/30 - Dallas TX - Trees
12/2 - Tallahassee FL - Club Downunder
12/3 - Atlanta GA - Echo Lounge
12/4 - Carrboro NC - Catís Cradle
12/5 - Philadelphia PA - North by Northwest
12/6 - Cambridge MA - Middle East
12/7 - New York NY - Bowery Ballroom
12/8 - Northampton MA - Pearl Street
12/9 - Toronto ON - Leeís Palace

An import EP of "The Shy Retirer" is available now on Chemikal Underground (US shops take note --- you can order yours from Matador Direct) and features content that didn't make it onto Album Of The Year contender, 'Mondays At The Hug & Pint', including covers of songs by AC/DC and Van Halen. You can also buy it from the Matador Store.

Arab Strap will be performing live on Seattle's KEXP on November 22.

The New Pornographers
Music videos, we love 'em. Even when the artists themselves don't appear in them. Blaine Thurier's clip for "All For Swinging You Around" can be seen on classy cable outlets near you. Miwa notes : "none of this double dutch jump roping is superimposed. This is the real shit. An organized sport since 1973." Up on the video page shortly.

You can also observe classic New Pornographers videos like "Letter From An Occupant" and "The Slow Descent Into Alcoholism" here (link) from the newly remastered U.S. edition of the first NP's album, 'Mass Romantic'.

The New Pornographers' schedule tour of the Europe - due to start in just a few days, is postponed due to circumstances beyond our control. But we're hopeful that said dates will be rescheduled for early in 2004. We'll let you know here, or perhaps you'll check in at the newly offical New Pornographers website.

Matmos
Following the dynamic duo's globetrotting w/ Bjork, Matmos return to the Bay Area this month as they take part in a visual art exhibit at the Yerba Buena Center For The Arts (http://www.yerbabuenaartsorg). If you're like me, you're always getting Yerba Buena and San Clemente mixed up. This event should help differentiate the two.

Those seeking more info about 'The Civil War' CD/LP check check out the cliff notes at http://www.brainwashed.com/matmos/news. I don't know this Cliff, but if he's down with Martin and Drew, he can't be all bad.

Guided By Voices
If Ted Turner were still in charge, this wouldn't have happened: CNN recently made history by putting GBV and Obie Trice in the same sentence. See for yourself:

http://www.cnn.com/2003/SHOWBIZ/Music/10/24/gunit.50cent.reut/index.html

After watching Willy Wonka on cable while recovering from a cold, the idea resurfaced and there we have it. Now, we may not be giving away a fly-in to Detroit or a diamond chain necklace but what we do offer is something that will expand your mind - the Hardcore UFO's box set.

As comprehensive as Bobbito's recent book, Where'd You Get Those?: New York City's Sneaker Culture: 1960-1987, the GBV box set is thoroughly fascinating, factual, and worth every hard earned penny. Why expect anything less from a band who The Wire's John Mulvey wrote: "The recorded work of Dayton, Ohio's Guided By Voices ranks as one of the most daunting in contemporary rock; seemingly infinite library of semi fi anthems, one minute epics and rockist pranks, where every fleeting idea is memorialized as a song." He said some less than complementary things, too, but that's why we're not giving him a free box. How's that for a rockist prank? But seriously, not only is this box a wonderful testament to Bob Pollard's past, present and future status as one of modern rock's most powerful minds, the packaging (an 84 page book with tons of great photos, super liner notes from Matt Sweeney, TJ Lax and Byron Coley) is the kind of thing you just can't get from Kazaa. (and if turns out you can, please think about what you're doing to our Christmas).

And because we value our customers, we're offering an 15 month Guided By Voices calendar free with purchase at the Matador Store. Bob's so prolific, he needs another 3 months in the year to cram everything in.

The Wisdom Of Harry
The new 'Torch Division' CD is out via Matador in Europe, also available to shops in the US via Matador direct. The Wisdom Of Harry are the featured Artist In Residence on John Kennedy's Xposure program on XFM, starting next Monday night (10 November). You'll be able to hear The Wisdom Of Harry in session, as well as a live interview with Pete Astor on the Monday show (11pm-1am GMT, 6-8pm, EST). Xposure can be heard by London residents on 104.9FM, or by the rest of the globe at http://www.xfm.co.uk.

Interpol
Success story numero uno of 2002-3 wrapped up 13 months of worldwide touring with NYC headlining gigs at the Hammerstein Ballroom and Roseland; among the pensioners in attendence were Ian McCulloch and Mick Jones (presumably the guitarist from the Clash and not the guy from Foreigner, though who knows. Gerard sees the guy from the Clash at football most weekends and if he can be in two places at once, he's much more deserving of that Rock'n'Roll Hall Of Fame induction than the schmoe that played on "Hot Blooded"). Though the band have been visiting close friends on the West Coast this week, we are very hopeful that we'll be revealing vague plans for the followup to 'Turn On The Bright Lights' very soon.

Cat Power
Along with Interpol, Ms. Marshall was nominated for this years Shortlist prize. Performances from Chan and Interpol can be seen in a one-hour M2 special this autumn, which should also include some music from the overrated hack that won the damn thing. Go ahead, call me ungracious. Chan might not be a sore loser, but I sure am.

Pretty Girls Make Graves
We could go on and on about how it isn't very nice to trick a band into playing a PETA benefit without telling them (though the puppy-punching videos did one heck of a job raising the audience's consciousness), but that's water under the bridge. Pretty Girls Make Graves did their thing at CMJ, and following the completion of the latest batch of US dates, they're heading to the UK and Greece for a short December tour, including a headling date at London's Mean Fiddler on December 19 as part of Kerrang's K-Fest (the "k" is for Kindness, by the way). On December 8, the UK side of our visionary company will be releasing a 7" and CD single of "All Medicated Geniuses". The CD version will include the long-rumoured cover of Bow Wow Wow's "C-30, C-60, C-90 Go!", one new track and a quicktime video for "This Is Our Emergency".

Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks
Our London correspondent was lucky enough to witness a brilliant Jicks set as part of the Domino label's 10th Anniversary celebrations, one that included a surprise version of Pavement's "Range Life" and an encore featuring Sam Coomes and Janet Weiss of Quasi. OK, that's enough rubbing your nose in it. SM + Jicks have the following Western US dates forthcoming:

12/1/03 - Los Angeles, CA - El Rey Theatre
12/2/03 - San Francisco, CA - Slim's
12/3/03 - San Francisco, CA - Slim's
12/5/03 - Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom
12/6/03 - Seattle, WA - Showbox

Yo La Tengo
Yo La Tengo's Hanukkah shows at Maxwell's will not be happening in 2003 --- perhaps we'll be deserving of another 8 night celebration in 2004. But since the band care so much about the other holidays on the calendar, Yo La Tengo will be playing at the Onion's Christmas party, taking place at North Six on December 16, as well as playing their first New Year's Eve show at Maxwell's since 1997/8 on December 31 (also known as "New Year's Eve").
Though I've been warned that merely repeated or linking to news on the band's official sites does not constitute "new or original content that will drive traffic to our own portal" (ok, I'm paraphrasing, no one really said that), sometimes I cannot resist. A literary & pictorial tour diary from Yo La Tengo's recent Autumn Tour of the USA can be found here.

We hope to have an announcement about a March 2004 UK tour very soon.

we get fan mail:
To
Matador Records
"The Creed of Indie Rock"
625 B'way
10012

OUCH! Listened to your latest sampler many times hoping my ears were wrong but they weren't. You guys make Lenny Kravitz look like a creative genius!

Oh sure, you DIDN'T NOTICE how plagiaristic all your acts are? Interpol steals EVERY drop of their music others! Typical conservative Republicans with no intelligence and no integrity. You're a bunch of THIEVES! (Pray no lawyers hear your music.)

I fully expected Malkmus & Yo La Tengo to be same old same old, but I was honestly shocked how bland and originality-free they were, and more so for the others. Get ready for the lawsuits!

You should sign this hot new band called The Alarm! They sound just like U2!!

If you want to see what originality sounds like, come watch me open for The Trachtenburgs at the Knit, Oct 3.

Now is a great time to stop sucking.

[heart], Touching You (guitarist of) the liquid tapedeck (Fast Froward Flood)

[on reverse of postcard, in larger type:]

All I'm asking is that you stop pretending the used cars you have are new. (Actually, you're selling STOLEN cars as if they're new & that's corrupt. Aren't you guys supposed to have more integrity than the shittiest major labels?

Label management replies: Thank you for your interest in Matador Records. Words of encouragement from young people like you mean the world to us. We do, however, have more integrity than the shittiest major labels. That said, we're still far behind the really good major labels and hopefully your constructive criticism (ie. Stop sucking, go see the Liquid Tapedeck) will enable us to catch up.

More mail:
"3 Chord Records will be done mixing the Christian All-Star project, Liberty n' Justice's "Welcome To The Revolution" the third week in Oct. We are planning a North American release in late March 04',with oversea markets and Latin America to be 1-3 weeks after the release in the States. We are looking to see who would be interested in licensing the project,and if you might be interested we need to know where to send and what you need us to submit to your company. The project had added a few new singers and lost one due to scheduling. The singers on the project are Lou Gramm(Foreinger), Bob Carlisle (Butterfly Kisses fame), Michael Sweet (Stryper), Harry Hess (Harem Scarem), John Schlitt (Petra), Greg X Volz (Petra),Jamie Rowe (Guardian, London Calling, AdrianGale), Dale Thompson (Bride), Ken Tamplin (Shout), Robert Fleischman (Journey/Vinnie Vincent), Rick Florian (White Heart), Scott Wenzel (White Cross), Jeff Fenholt (Black Sabbath), Doug Phelps (Kentucky Headhunters), Paul Q.PEk (One Bad Pig), Mitch McVicker, and Mike Roe (The 77's). The project is like the way Santana had released there last couple of albums with guest vocals on every song. We are also in negotiations with Mitch Malloy on doing one more song so we have plenty of bonus tracks for the diffrent markets. If interested please reply with an address plus what you need for us to submit and what countries your company covers.

God Bless,
Justin Murr
http://www.3chordrecords.net/

Matador Label Management replies: Thank you for your interest in Matador Records. Though your project sounds undoubtedly exciting (several of us are big fans of Lou Gramm, particularly as he gave us an excuse to mention Foreigner a record-breaking 4th time in this update), our release schedule for the first quarter of 2004 is quite full.

Mac McCaughan writes:
news on the Superchunk front: recently returned from a short East Coast tour supporting the new Cup of Sand dbl-disc set (Merge US / Elefant Europe), wherein we were joined onstage in Washington DC by former Government Issue vocalist John Stabb for renditions of two GI classics "Blending In" and "Hall of Fame" -- we were honored to share the stage and we could almost play the songs fast enough for Stabb...now preparing for early-'04 release of the Superchunk DVD, 'Crowding Up Your Visual Field' featuring all our videos plus live clips and a one-hour documentary film of the 'Here's To Shutting Up' world tour including fabulous cameos from Matador's own Lucy Hurst as well as Matador/Chemikal Underground artists Aereogramme, among others.

Listening piles and other favorites:
Mac McCaughan, Superchunk:

Lyrics Born 'later that day...'
Reigning Sound 'Time Bomb Highschool'
Lamont Dozier 'The Legendary...'
Tommie Young 'Do You Still Feel the Same Way?'
the Shins 'Chutes Too Narrow'
Carla Bozulich 'Red Headed Stranger'
the Ladybug Transistor - s/t
Quasi - 'Hot Shit!'
Neil Young and Crazy Horse 'Greendale'
Belle and Sebastian 'Dear Catastrophe Waitress'

Sujan Hong, Beggars Group:

These are the top songs that have played on my iPod, which is set to
shuffle, but resets itself each time I add new songs.

1. I'm a Cuckoo - Belle and Sebastian
2. Sur Le Pont d'Avignon - Alan Mills
3. A Call to Apahty - The Shins
4. Ha Ha This A Way - Leadbelly
5. The Dawn - The Tyde
6. Icarus - The Action
7. Sum Up Broke _ The Byrds
8. Sugar Daddy - The Jackson Five
9. Northern Lites - Super Furry Animals

Matt Harmon, Beggars Group:

Top CMJ moments...
Ted Leo & The Pharmacists at CBGBs
Measles, Mumps and Rubella at the Knitting Factory
The Shins at Virgin Megastore
Death Comet Crew reunion show at Knitting Factory
Pretty Girls Make Graves at North 6th and Knitting Factory
James McNew's DJ Set at 85A
The Hold Steady at The Knitting Factory
The Kissing Booth at The French Kiss Showcase

A week before CMJ but absolutely great show anyway...
Alasdair Roberts and PG Six live at Tonic

Miwa Okumura, Beggars Group:

Death Cab For Cutie
The Speaking Canaries
Opti-grab
New Blood compilation
Electrelane "On Parade" cd-single

Euvin Weeber, Beggars Group:

Extras and Oddities
The best of John Lee Hooker 2 disc Rhino Comp
Serge Gainsbourg 'Historie de Melody Nelson'
Having 200 of my friends from all over the country here in town playing at
CMJ
Alcohol poisoning from hanging out with the aforementioned friends.
Parsley Sound 'Parsley Sound'
Finally falling in love with Pavement albums.
Guided Buy Voices Christmas 2003!
Meeting girls who are into Amon Duul and Blind Willie McTell
Elliot Smith RIP (The man who made the band aids for my break ups)

Alan English, Matador Records:

Envy - A Dead Sinking Story (Rock Action)
Television - Marquee Moon remastered (Rhino)
Polmo Polpo - Like Hearts Swelling (Constellation)
Jackie-O Motherfucker - WOW / The Magick Fire Music (ATP)
Animal Collective - Campfire Songs (Catsup Plate)
Animal Collective - Spirit They've Gone Spirit They've Vanished (FatCat)
Animal Collective - Here Comes The Indian (Paw Tracks)
Death Cab For Cutie - Transatlanticism (Fierce Panda)
why? - Live tour cdr (anticon)

Following an article on my band last month there was a letter written into the current issue of 'The Face' magazine pointing out that I often get mistaken for a girl. And at 22 years old, I got ID'd for cigarettes twice this week. The world is trying to tell me something. I'm just not so sure I know what that is.

Patrick Amory, Matador Records:

Outkast - Speakerboxxx/The Love Below (La Face quadruple LP)
Kaleidoscope - Please Listen to the Pictures (Circle LP)
Ugly Things - latest issue - a cornucopia of knowledge
RJD2 - Dead Ringer (Def Jux LP)
Television - Live at the Old Waldorf 1978 (Rhino Handmade CD)

Mark Ohe, Matador Records:

mark o's listening pile TOP 10:

T.K. Webb, "The Ungodly Hours", Garnet
De Ford Bailey, "The Legendary De Ford Bailey", Tennessee Folklore Society
Cass McCombs, "A", Monitor
Trad Gras Och Stenar, "Live 1972", 1/2 Special
Guided By Voices, "Isolation Drills", TVT
Chet Atkins, "A Session With Chet Atkins", RCA Victor
Gene Clark, No Other", Asylum
Patto, "Patto", Akarma
Taste, "Taste", Atco
Lifeguards, "Mist King Urth", Fading Captain

Gerard Cosloy, Matador Records:

The Verlaines - You're Just Too Obscure For Me (Flying Nun)
The Fall - Country On The Click (Action)
Youth Movie Soundtrack Strategies - Let's Get Going?ou're Fracturing Me With This Misery
Sensational - Natural Shine (Wordsound)
Oranges Band - All Around (Lookout)
Superchunk - Cup Of Sand (Merge)
Metamatics - Mind Mushing Git (Hydrogen Dukebox)