December 5, 2001

Arsonists
Their 7 week US tour with DJ Swamp and Swollen Members just came to a conclusion and if you missed Q-Unique, Jise and Swell 79 in action, here’s what you missed (according to one witness in Worcester, MA): “... and Arsonists provided one of the most energetic stage shows I’ve ever encountered — and while it was in ’99 this is including a James Brown show — a blast of straight up American hip hop in its rawest finest form. The type of shit that makes entire block parties bounce and low riders dance. There was about 100 people there packed tight and feeding off every bit.”

This guy isn’t just blowing smoke. On wax or on stage, the 2001 Arsonists trio make the doubters believe and make the believers look smart. ‘Date Of Birth’ (CD/2XLP) is available now.

Cornelius
Keigo just completed US and UK press trips to publicize the January release of ‘Point.’ Next up, he’ll be rehearsing for live shows, gathering his touring ensemble and perfecting yet again his impressive synchronization of video and song, making this tour one of next year’s most anticipated live events.

Be on the lookout for a Matador exclusive Cornelius video interview (uploaded soon) along with a series of music videos from ‘Point,’ commercials, and his own web games! His official website has recently been translated to English so you can actually read it aloud. For some of us, we won’t have to spend so much time cut and pasting text in JDIC.

Yo La Tengo
James McNew writes: “Oh yeah, we’ve been up to a bunch of stuff, all right. We’ve been so busy, we’ve been going on other bands’ websites and updating their news sections for them. We travelled to Seattle and Portland with our Jean Painleve short film program show, and had a great time (we also recorded all this music a few months ago with good old Roger Moutenot). We’re currently gearing up for Hanukkahpalooza 2001 at Maxwell’s. We’ll also be ringing in the new year in the Motor City, isn’t that where The Romantics or somebody were from? Other than that, I’ve been learning to cook Thai food, I made crumpets a few weeks ago, saw The Arsonists/ Mr. Len w/ Jean Grae at Maxwell’s, enjoyed the onstage comedy stylings of Lois Maffeo & Brendan Canty, read Empire by Mitch Pacelle, saw a rerun of my favorite “King of The Hill” (Bobby’s first girlfriend), kept up with Buffy, and tried not to think about the Knicks.”

Aereogramme “Beards Across America” Newsletter
Well, we finally made it. We are very glad to get the chance to share our noisy rock with you all and so far most people have been incredibly decent to us. Even your shop assistants are great. I have never had a waitress ask me how I am feeling before. Then again, she proably never expected me to tell her about my athelete’s foot problem.

Here is a quick summary of our travels so far:

Detroit — Scary! One mugging, one car crash and one car theft in the space of an hour. Not Bad!

Toronto — Beautiful venue but scary prostitutes outside our hotel.

Montreal — Stubborn French road signs. Even the danger signs are in French with no English translation! Amazing city and the caberet music hall treated us so well (i.e. they gave us more beer).

Boston — Played in a theatre that reminded us of the Muppets Show. Found out later we could have got to see the new David Lynch film for free. Damn.

New York — My first time and it’s as amazing as everyone said it would be. Only a few crazy people shouting at us about God. "The Arabs have no balls" apparently. First night at the Bowery was a bit messy but the second night rocked like a hairy beast.

Philly — Another amazing venue, spoiled by a nonsense rule that stopped the beer drinkers from coming down to the stage. It’s hard to play a gig when you can’t see anyone’s face. Has no one noticed that gotham city is actually just the centre of Philladelphia?

We would like to put a big shout out to Superchunk who have treated us very well and to Rilo Kiley who have some of the best songs we have heard in ages. Please check them out.

Tour music — We only got the stereo fixed yesterday but "lift to experience," "stars of the lid" and various mix tapes have dominated our stereo so far. Thanks to Donovan for that.

That’s about it for now but if anyone reading this comes to the next batch of shows please say hello. Thanks.

Aereogramme

Khan — Show business’ hardest working man writes:
“the nick cave tour in the u.s. is reschedualed after the the sept. 11th events to april-may 2002 and i will play some show with kid congo to support the bad seeds.

diamanda galas was very shocked to hear that the nick cave tour was canceled as she thought nick cave has some kinda conection to death and would not be such a pussy to cancel the tour in the first place. or was it sissy?? i love diamanda.

i will also be working on some material for diamanda when i’m in mexico. after our collaboration on no comprendo we decided to work on more stuff together. our mutual hate for moby brought us together.

i just came back from a very successful show in portugal at the blue spot festival in porto. people are fantastic and super nice. they are so nice that i felt like jim morrison flowting through the audience in a delirium. wonderful (wine and food).

the press the next day called me the lux interior of electronic music. my list is getting pretty long by now. frank sinatra, gg allin, udo juergens... lux.

i will be in mexico from dec. to march and joined the university to study spanish. they have a pool too. also i’m planing to make enough field recording there in sleazy mariachi bars to make a new album.

i have finished 3 albums:
1. kid congo powers & can “khan” oral
2. pig, cat & co.w (electronicat, mingo—go & khan)
3. liz (actress) & khan

i also did some guest vocals for the air liquide album "X" that was just released and 3 songs for their next album. also i’m working on some vocals for the up coming modernist (or bionaut).”

Mary Timony
We asked for an update, and Mary delivered: “I’m in the midst of recording, I’ve done basic tracks, and I’m going to Virginia this week to record with Mark Linkus. Also look for a song on a Kill Rock Stars compilation later in the new year. I’ve also hired a band of 12 dwarves to play the bells and pipes on my record. OK, that part’s not true... I hope to have the record out in the spring. I just got two cats? Okay, that’s not relevant either.”

The Wisdom Of Harry
Pete Astor reports: “I’m currently working on songs for the new Wisdom Of Harry record... at the moment it’ getting simpler and simpler... vocals & guitar, drums and sound... like jj cale meets king tubby if only jj wasn’t so damn laid back, contented and american and king tubby was alive and english and played songs like beuell kazee... as well as this my other thing, Ellis Island Sound — which I do in partnership with sometime Wisdom Of Harry collaborator, David Sheppard — have finalised our deal with the Heavenly label and shall be releasing a compilation of some of our favourite vinyl and remix moments from the last few years... this will span everthing from our first release which was for the estimable Chicago label All City (home of the first records from Bonnie Prince Billy and Calexico, among others) to our more recent remixes for the likes of The Manic Street Preachers and Regular Fries... this will be out in the new year...

Listening-wise, my current fixation is on the very great drukqs album by The Aphex Twin... not some elaborate, situationalist practical joke as seems to be the received wisdom in some quarters, but actually a fucking masterpiece, you idiots... it’s not too long it’s just anenormous and important thing, a bit like the bible or something.”

The Soft Boys
The word from Robyn Hitchcock: “I’ve just completed my first ever acting job, a cameo role as a seedy rock grand-dad in the TV movie version of ‘Man & Boy,’ due to be screened on BBC 1 at Easter; I am also interviewed for the BBC 2 Omnibus special about Syd Barrett that was shown last week; I am doing the music for a Radio 4 play ‘The Condition Of The Virgin’ by Boothby Graffoe; I have almost completed my novel ‘The Unbaby’; and the Soft Boys are 2/3rds of the way through The Apple Project.

D-Stroy: ‘Cataclysm’ and more
“D-Stroy getting at you dirty rats. Cheers the world is getting back to where it needs to be. So while the war continues I gotta let ya know what’s the latest with Stroy Thunder. I’ve been real good the year to come will definitely be good. I’ve Put my Voice on a few video games also some voiceovers for some karate flicks. Did a few auditions but the parts were given to legitimate actors, so i guess I can’t get mad at that. Got a lot of press on my own, which has been healthy. Also real good reviews on the singles pulled off a show for the lyricist lounge scumbags, that went well. I had some choreographed females doing they thing to ‘Roll Out.’ Oh I also did this hosting, action and performing off Broadway joint that was dope called Triumph. The EP I’m working on it’s going to be the healthiest thing on Matador. The new year should be good with D-Stroy ‘Cataclysm’ and Large Professor’s joints coming out for hip hop and Matador. Staff at the label better get ready for some quality product. Though the events of 9-11 hurt sales, by the time my EP comes out, if you reading this, save ya change and run to the store when it comes out. Yeah I’ll have some featured artists on it, known ones. Can’t give too much detail, gotta save that, package it and sell it. It’s not to be told. it’s to be sold. Roll Out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”

Solex
Elisabeth wraps up the tour: “Here’s a top 5 of bands I’d never ever seen before & pleasantly surprised me supporting Solex on the last US tour;

1) Dalek (on the whole tour): Genuine !
2) The Helio Sequence (in Los Angeles) Very sexy duo. Awesome drummer !!!!!!!!
3) Kid 606 (in Chicago) First time I saw an exciting live show with just a guy & a laptop !!! And he was checking mail...
4) Plastic Phantom (in Seattle) Visuals & music (bleeps & blops) very well put together. Awkward in the nicest way.
5) O.K., ... so it’s a top 4.

In a week or so you can read a tour diary of this latest US tour on: http://www.solex.net

In the meantime, I’ll be on the road in Germany, Austria and Italy for new hi-fi adventures.”

Label Co-President Hosts
Hastily Assembled Radio Show
This coming Thursday night, BBC 1’s “One World” program is hosted (and we use that word loosely) by Gerard Cosloy, who waxes eloquent (there’s another word we’ll use loosely) on Matador’s history while playing a selection of the label’s releases, past, present and future. If his comments don’t seem to make much sense and the choice of records seems to skip massive chunks of the Matador ouevre, well, we should just blame it on the editing. Tourette’s syndrome is no laughing matter and the BBC can’t risk being thrown off the air. The good news is, they cut out the part where he tells the story about Matador almost getting evicted (like everyone hasn’t heard that one a hundred times). The part where he challenges the Strokes to a knife fight, however, might still make it to air. 7pm EST, December 6.

Patrick Amory’s Listening Pile:
1. The Woods Band — The Woods Band (Greenwich UK LP)
2. Small Faces — Small Faces (Immediate UK LP)
3. Davy Graham — Dance For Two People (Kicking Mule UK LP)
4. The Stone Poneys — The Stone Poneys (Capitol US LP)
5. Bach — Ich geh und suche mit Verlangen/Was Gott tut, das ist wohlgetan (Rilling) (Hänssler Ger LP)
6. The Holy Mackerel — The Holy Mackerel (Reprise US LP)
7. Sibelius — Sympony No. 7/Pelléas et Melisande — incidental music/Tapiola/The Oceanides (Beecham/RPO) (EMI CD)
8. Sibelius — Symphony No. 4 / Symphony No. 6 / Lemminkäinen’s Return / The Bard / Prelude to The Tempest (Beecham/LPO, RPO) (EMI CD)
9. The Pentangle — Sweet Child (Reprise double LP)
10. George Szell and the Cleveland Orchestra — Live In Tokyo 1970 (Weber / Mozart / Sibelius / Berlioz / Interview with Pierre Boulez) (Cleveland Orchestra & Musical Arts Association double CD)

Miwa Okumura, Matador Records
—Kahimi Karie My Suitor (Emperor Norton)
—Alec Empire Intelligence and Sacrifice (Beat Inc/DHR)
—Autolux (Demo)
—Death Cab for Cutie The Photo Album (Bark)
—Tatsuhiko Asano Genny Haniver" (Geist)


Doug Nyce’s “Cats bringing the heat” list
Masta Ace "Disposable Arts" LP (J-Cor)
Ghostface Killah "Bullet Proof Wallets" LP (Epic)
Mobb Deep Feat. Vita and Big Noyd "Burn" (Loud) this joint is sick!!!!
Encore "It’s Time" (Landspeed)
Eyedea and Abilities "Blindly Firing" (Rhymesayers)
Wu Tang Clan "Pinky Ring" (Wu-Tang/Epic)
Antionio Hart "Ana tu Sunrisa" LP (Enja)
Living Legends feat Slug "Nightprowler"
Unspoken Heard "Soon Come" LP (Sevenheads)

Gerard Cosloy, Matador Records
Cex - Oops, I Did It Again (Tigerbeat6)
Lali Puna - Scary World Theory (Morr Music)
Electric Eels - The Eyeball of Hell (Scat)
Timeblind - Rugged Redemption (musork)
Wilco - Yankee Foxtrot Hotel
Roots Manuva - Run Come Save Me (Big Dada)
Jim O’Rourke - Insignificance (Drag City)