Communique #006

I hope this posting finds you happy and healthy in the new year! Good riddance 2009 and hello new decade! I'm very optimistic that this decade will have some big things in store and I'm making it my mission to track it down and bring it to your awareness. So I'm going to try to actually make and stick to a new years resolution for the first time in my life by posting here at least once a month (among other things). So keep checking in every so often to get the latest scoop and rumors on your favorite artists. Into the next decade, like the last, we're always gonna want it sonic.

Upcoming Releases:
Pitchfork has posted an impressive list of upcoming releases for the first four months of 2010. I did a little bit of trimming to point out the highlights since there are quite a few albums to be excited about. Some are follow-ups to incredibly popular debuts and some, signs of life from dormant major players in the music world. You can bet that having a major (read: hyped) release during this period makes for high chances of that band making an appearance at Coachella; David Bowie has two(!!!). For a full list from pitchfork, go here.

January
01-05
Joker: "City Hopper" b/w "Output 1-2" [Tectonic]
01-12
Final Fantasy: Heartland [Domino]
Vampire Weekend: Contra [XL]
01-18
These New Puritans: Hidden [Angular/Domino] [UK Release]
Various Artists: Pop Ambient 2010 [Kompakt]
01-19
Cold War Kids: Behave Yourself EP [Downtown]
01-26
Animal Collective: Campfire Songs [Paw Tracks] [reissue]
Beach House: Teen Dream [Sub Pop]
David Bowie: A Reality Tour [ISO/Columbia/Legacy]
Los Campesinos!: Romance Is Boring [Arts & Crafts]
Pit Er Pat: The Flexible Entertainer [Thrill Jockey]
Spoon: Transference [Merge]

February
02-02
Blind Man's Colour: Wooden Blankets [Kanine]
02-09
David Bowie: David Bowie: Deluxe Edition [Decca/Universal]
Hot Chip: One Life Stand [Astralwerks]]
Massive Attack: Heligoland [Virgin]
Yeasayer: Odd Blood [Secretly Canadian]

March
03-01
New Young Pony Club: The Optimist [The Numbers]
03-02
Groove Armada: Black Light [Om]
These New Puritans: Hidden [Domino] [U.S. Release]
03-09
Alberta Cross: Broken Side of Time [Ark Recordings/ATO]
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club: Beat the Devil's Tattoo [Abstract Dragon/Vagrant]
Broken Bells: Broken Bells [Columbia]
Frightened Rabbit: The Winter of Mixed Drinks [Fat Cat]
jj: jj no 3 [Sincerely Yours/Secretly Canadian]
Liars: Sisterworld [Mute]
Titus Andronicus: The Monitor [XL]
03-16
White Stripes: Under Great White Northern Lights CD/DVD [Third Man]
03-23
Goldfrapp: Head First [Mute]
Jónsi Birgisson: Go [XL]
She & Him: Volume Two [Merge]

April
04-20
Flying Lotus: Cosmogramma [Warp]

Other releases expected in the first quarter of 2010
Battles: TBA [Warp]
!!!: TBA [Warp]
The Drums: TBA [TBA]
Gorillaz: Plastic Beach [Virgin]
Interpol: TBA [Capitol]
Javelin: TBA [Luaka Bop]
LCD Soundsystem: TBA [DFA]
MGMT: Congratulations [Columbia]

Upcoming Shows
Vivian introduced me to a website called Ohmyrockness.com which has an amazing aggregated list of LA are shows from the Avalon, Disney Concert Hall, the Echo(plex), Spaceland and the Smell, to Fox theater Pomona and the Glass House. Here are some highlights to kick off the new decade right.

01/08
Sonic Youth, Sic Alps @ the Fox Theater Pomona $28
Atlas Sound, tUnE-YaRds @ LA County Natural History Museum $5 (5PM)
01/09
Sonic Youth, Sic Alps @ the Fox Theater Pomona $28
01/12
Vampire Weekend @ Henry Fonda Theater $28
01/14
Alberta Cross @ Troubadour $12
I Am A Laser (Daedelus, Gaslamp Killer) Live art and visuals @ Club Nokia $5 adv./10 door (21+)
01/16
Hockey, Asa Ransom, Eastern Conference Champions @ Spaceland $8 adv./10 Door (21+)
Asobi Seksu (acoustic set) @ the Hotel Cafe $13 (21+)
01/19
The Hot Rats (feat. Gaz Coombes and Danny Goffey of Supergrass) @ Spaceland $15 (21+)
White Denim, Brazos @ Troubadour $12 adv./14 door
01/20
Har Mar Superstar, Little Red Radio @ Spaceland $10 21+
The Hot Rats (feat.Gaz and Dan of Supergrass), Lemon Sun @ Troubadour $15
As Tall As Lions @ the Glass House $12
01/22
The Black Lips, Nobunny, Jemina Pearl @ The Glass House $12
Cold War Kids, Alec Ounsworth (of Clap Your Hands Say Yeah) @ the Wiltern $25
01/23
The Black Lips, Nobunny, Jemina Pearl @ El Ray Theater $17
01/26
The Cribs, Jemina Pearl, (Be Your Own Pet) @ the Glass House $15
01/27
The Airborne Toxic Event @ Troubadour $45
01/30
Moving Units, Rumspringa, Casxio @ the Glass House $20
02/01
Do Make Say Think @ Troubadour $16
02/05
Dave Davies (of The Kinks), Year Long Disaster @ El Ray Theater $33
Yeasayer @ LA County Natural History Museum $9 (5PM)
Daedelus @ the Echo $13 adv./$15 door (18+)
02/06
Vivian Girls, Best Coast, Pearl Harbour, Dunes @ the Smell $5
They Might Be Giants @ Largo $25 (2PM/8PM)
02/09
St. Vincent, Wildbirds and Peacedrums @ El Ray Theater $18
02/11
Editors, the Antlers @ Wiltern $tba
the Thermals, Thao w/ the Get Down Stay Down @ Troubadour $16
02/12
Chicago Underground Duo, Pit Er Pat @ Bootleg $12
02/13
Alice In Chains @ Hollywood Palladium $tba
02/16
Alkaline Trio, Cursive @ the Glass House $21 adv/$24 doors
02/19
Vitalic @ Avalon Hollywood $tba
02/20
Tinariwen @ Royce Hall (UCLA) $24
02/25
Cheap Trick @ House of Blues Sunset Strip $52.50
02/26
We Were Promised Jet Packs, The Lonely Forest, Bear Hands @ Troubadour $15
02/27
Dirty Projectors w/ LA Philharmonic @ Walt Disney Concert Hall $32
03/02
The Magnetic Fields @ Wilshire Ebell Theatre $30
03/03
El Perro Del Mar @ Troubadour $13 adv./15 door
03/05
The Clientele, The Wooden Birds @ Spaceland $12 (21+)
03/06
The Clientele, The Wooden Birds @ Spaceland $12 (21+)
03/09
The Big Pink, A Place To Bury Strangers @ El Ray Theater $18
03/10
Delta Spirit @ Bootleg $12 (21+)
03/11
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club @ Echoplex $25 (18+)
03/12
The Cave Singers, The Dutchess and the Duke, The Moondoggies @ The Echo $10
03/13
HARD 13: Fake Blood, Jack Beats, Boy 8 Bit, Destructo + more @ Club Nokia $13
03/14
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club @ the Echo $25 (18+)
03/20
Beyond Wonderland: Paul Van Dyk, Groove Armada, Caspa, +much more @ NOS Events Center $45
03/23
Acid Mothers Temple @ Spaceland $10 (21+)
03/24
Cymbals Eat Guitars, Bear In Heaven @ the Echo $8 (18+)
03/25
She & Him @ El Ray Theater $23
Copeland (Farewell Tour) @ the Glass House $16

03/26

Copeland (Farewell Tour) @ El Ray Theater $15
03/28
Air @ Walt Disney Concert Hall $35 adv/$55 door
04/06
RJD2, Busdriver, Happy Chichester @ El Ray Theater $20
04/23
Norah Jones @ Orpheum Theater $34
04/24
The Bloody Beetroots (first live performance) @ Hollywood Palladium $tba


Coachella
That's right, the new years arrived and it means that we can start looking forward to the kick off of the summer festival season and what better way to soak up some color in the sun than by doing it desert style at Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival? It's still another month away until the line-up is announced, but the Coachella site is being updated and is already posting dates (April 16-18), new rules and a guide on purchasing lay-away tickets. Already dreaming of the summer sun like me? Check it out now. Otherwise, here's a list of rumored and "confirmed" artists for 2010. Sources Here

Bold = "confirmed", everything else = heavily rumored

1. A Place To Bury Strangers
2. As Tall As Lions
3. Aeroplane
4. Avett Brothers
5. Bad Lieutenant
6. Baroness
7. Band of Skulls
8. Bassnectar
9. Beastie Boys
10. Bloody Beetroots
11. Bonobo
12. Boys Noize
13. Buraka Som Sistema
14. Citizen Cope
15. Cornelius
16. Craze and Klever
17. Deerhunter
18. Delorean
19. Devo
20. Dirty Projectors
21. Echo and the Bunnymen
22. Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros
23. El Gran Silencio
24. Faith No More
25. Florence and the Machine
26. Fool's Gold
27. Free Energy
28. Gary Numan
29. Girls
30. Gorillaz
31. Hockey
32. Hot Chip
33. Iglu & Hartly
34. Imogen Heap
35. jj
36. Kevin Devine
37. Little Boots
38. Major Lazer
39. Mayer Hawthorne
40. Mew
41. MGMT
42. Micachu & The Shapes
43. Miike Snow
44. Muse
45. No Age
46. Orbital
47. Panda Bear
48. Pavement
49. Perry Farrell
50. Phoenix
51. Pretty Lights
52. Proxy
53. Public Image Ltd
54. Quantic
55. Steel Train
56. Sleepy Sun
57. Smashing Pumpkins
58. Soundgarden
59. Spoon
60. Sunny Day Real Estate
61. Tallest Man on Earth
62. Tegan and Sara
63. The Antlers
64. The Big Pink
65. The Cribs
66. The Dead Weather
67. The Rolling Stones
68. The xx
69. Them Crooked Vultures
70. Tiesto
71. Vampire Weekend
72. Vieux Farka Touré
73. Vitalic
74. Yeasayer
75. Zoé

Autumn Leaves vol. V
Music for the dying leaves and bare trees. Music to keep you warm when the nights get dark and cold. Enjoy.

Communique #4: I just want to take this time to pay my respects to the family of Michael Jackson. Despite all the negative publicity Jackson got toward the later part of his life, he will always be the King of Pop who inspired countless artists and fans as well as shaped a huge part of the music world we've inherited today.


Get These Now!:
It's hard to believe that the year is already half over. Summer is here and whether you're chilling on your hammock in the backyard, or out having an adventure, great tunes are absolutely essential to fully enjoying the season. Lucky for us 2009 is shaping up to be a great year for music. So here are some picks for the best albums and EP's of 2009 so far [not ranked].

1. Merriweather Post Pavilion - Animal Collective
2. Eats Darkness - Apostle of Hustle
3. Fruit - the Asteroids Galaxy Tour
4. Still Night, Still Light - Au Revoir Simone
5. Two Suns - Bat For Lashes
6. Together Through Life - Bob Dylan
7. Outer South - Conor Oberst & the Mystic Valley Band
8. Summer of Hate - Crocodiles
   
9. Dark Night of the Soul - Dangermouse and Sparklehorse
10. The Open Door EP [EP] - Death Cab For Cutie
11. The Hazards of Love - the Decemberists
12. Fever Ray - Fever Ray
13. Tonight: Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand
14. Ganglians [EP] - Ganglians
15. Monster Head Room - Ganglians
16. The Mountain - Heartless Bastards
17. In System Travel [EP] - Jamie Vex'd
18. Begone Dull Care - Junior Boys
19. Octahedron - the Mars Volta
20. Miike Snow - Miike Snow
21. Manners - Passion Pit
22. Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix - Phoenix
    
23. Invaders Must Die - the Prodigy
24. Mandala - Rx Bandits
25. Swoon - Silversun Pickups
26. The Eternal - Sonic Youth
27. To Lose My Life - White Lies
28. Wilco - Wilco
29. Chamber Music - Wu-Tang Clan
    
30. It's Blitz - Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Communique #3: Since you all have been so good and patient, I'm offering up a little goodie. Here's another Summer influenced mix, chalk-full of tasty new tracks. Enjoy, cause I know y'all always Want It Sonic.

Another Summer Mix:

Valiant Brave - Ganglians
F Kenya RIP - Highlife
Eazy Speaks - Apostle of Hustle
Bicycle - Memory Tapes
Cult Logic - Miike Snow
Bits & Pieces - Junior Boys
Farewell to the Fairground - White Lies
Uh - Fujiya & Miyagi
Audacity of Huge - Simian Mobile Disco -
Love The Night Away (Tiedye Mix) - DJ Kaos
Nothing Else Matters - Tiedye
Psychic City (Voodoo City) - YACHT
Asleep At A Party - Memory Cassette
Shadows - Au Revoir Simone
Daniel - Bats For Lashes
Dreamer - Tiny Vipers

Download it here!

Ganglians:
There is a point when passing the threshold into a psychedelic trip where everything becomes very muddy. Lines between what is and isn't as well as what should and shouldn't be become extremely blurred and you can no longer trust your senses to accurately portray the world around you. All you can do is hold on to your ass and accept what truths the universe's infinite wisdom decides to reveal to you. This song is a lot like that. The chirps of flutes and wails of saxophones pop out from under a lo-fi, psych-rock, fuzz blanket that is tossing you up into the cloudy skies above the oceans shore, and it's totally blowing your mind.

Highlife:
The immediate success of Vampire Weekend put the foot in the door that Afro-pop needed to become hip and well represented at every summer festival across the country and Highlife are a product of this truth. Named after a musical genre originating in Ghana which bacame extremely popular in english-speaking West Africa, the solo project of New York's Doug Shaw offers up a bright acoustic love letter to the region and it's culture. Naming the tracks title after the famous F Kenya's Guitar Band, Shaw even borrows a core line, "Madame Zehae Ala" from a song with the same name. The playfully gentle rhythm, with a Birds of Paradise flute line and breezy backing vocals, is sure to start a spontaneous dance circle at the local marketplace.

Memory Tapes:
I remember sneaking out at night with friends to lay claim to the throne as King of the sleepy cities. With cigarettes and booze we ruled the empty streets, free to roam and explore without ever letting any consequences cross our mind. There's something about summer nights that make it so easy to stumble into love. This track is everything nostalgic about being young and care-free around the neighborhood you grew up in wherever that may be. You can almost feel the breeze and bugs as light and airy synths fly across a funky bass line, while garbage can drums crash, breaking in and out of electro-shenanigans.

Miike Snow:
What can perhaps be seen as a thinly veiled swipe at the increasingly watered down and stagnating house/electro scene, Miike Snow singer, Andrew Wyatt, is falling asleep on his feet again while wondering aloud "if there's anybody listening", but with sugary sweet vocals, it's hard to believe these lovers can ever be fighters. What cuts this Swedish three piece apart from any other Nintendo-powered dance floor funk-fest is the heart inside this machine. With a house beat that can get the dance floor going, this track is poppy and accessible enough to gather a major following and (along with the ripples-turned-wave singles "Animal" and "Burial" already making a splash in the indie pool) maybe even enough steam to thrust the band towards becoming another break out act a la MGMT.

Simian Mobile Disco:
It may sound like a joke when you break up with your main band (Simian) to focus on taking your low profile side project (Simian Mobile Disco) a little more serious, but when rising stars in the french electro scene (Justice) take your track and turn it into a perennial club fixture, it would sound like a joke not to explore the depths of cool offered with producing beats. So maybe the joke was on us when SMD dropped their 2007 debut, Attack Decay Sustain Release, with tracks with titles like "Tits and Acid" and songs with lyrics swiped from street corner double dutch ("Hotdog"). Either way the single from their first effort, "It's The Beat", only pushed the duo further into the stratosphere of stardom.
So now, with the help of Yeasayer vocalist, Chris Keating, SMD poke a little fun at their own success by offering up a track exposing the ridiculousness and futility of fame. Over a minimal beat that barks and bleeps, Keating name drops and lists off his qualities of cool before diving into the refrain, "I've got it all, yes it's true./So why don't I get you?". Despite all the mope, this track is likely to blow these guys past huge into whatever comes after. Either way, these DJs and their adoring dancers alike can both bounce around with a little egg on their face.

Au Revoir Simone:
Whether we like it or not, our brains are banks storing anything and everything that tickles or tortures the senses. With lyrics about struggling to forget extinguished flames, listening to Au Revoir Simone is like thumbing through the diary of a teenage girl who remembers playing on her grandmothers piano, writes songs about growing pains and the boys who tug their heart strings while composing them on a Casio keyboard they keep under their bed. The vocals, which are sung by all three members in the all-female band, remain constant in a sense that they're soft like a secret being shared. However, there's something else about this song structure or melody that feels so fuzzily ubiquitous- like a seeing a friends face without remembering their name. Either way seeing them perform at the El Rey Theater recently has really got me constantly playing this song. Guess I just can't get it out of my head.

Bat For Lashes:
Bat For Lashes (AKA the half Pakistani- half English, Nathasha Kahn) is definitely this summers "it-girl" who is being hailed as the next great solo-female phenom and drawing comparisons to artists such as Bjork, PJ Harvey and Fiona Apple. This track features magically literate and intelligent lyrics under hauntingly beautiful melodies capable of enchanting the imagination. Led by an 80's nu-wave rhythm of drums and bass delicately layered over dramatic trumpets and synths that are interrupted only by the pluck or play of a violins strings.

Communique #2: I know it's been a long time. Don't worry, I've missed you too.





Family
In July's edition of Spin there was a brief snipet that caught my attention on a book called Family. It's a collection of concert photos and candid portraits of Devendra Banhart plus other musicians and artists from Los Angeles' Bohemian/Freak-Folk crowd. The photos, taken by Lauren Dukoff, a native LA photographer and longtime friend to Banhart, gather to create feeling of intimacy that one would normally find in a family album or with pictures of old friends you keep on a shelf. Included with the book is a compilation of artists featured including Devendra Banhart, Joanna Newsom, Bat for Lashes, Feathers, Espers, Vetiver, Bert Jansch, Vashti Bunyan, and many others.

Buy or check out Family on Amazon




Sunset Junction
Now that it's summer, my mind is starting to wander off on thoughts of all the shows that pass through LA around this time of year. One event that I'm looking forward to, Sunset Junction, managed to snag my stamp of approval by keeping a casual, fun atmosphere in a small time street carnival setting while still managing to deliver some pretty hip names in indie music. Last years festival-esque line-up included Broken Social Scene, Cold War Kids, !!!, and the Black Keys with other artists and DJs performing on other separate stages and areas. While no headliners have been named, smaller acts have been announced such as Silver Lake locals Nico Vega, Warpaint (who were recently featured in Family), and War Tapes (who I think I remember opening for Rx Bandits or Moving Units once at the Glass House).

Bonus Points : Contact Sunset Junction and request Devendra Banhart and Silversun Pickups to play. SunsetJunction@SunsetJunction.org

Warpaint

Curiosity got the better of me recently, after having seen this bands name around I decided to check out their myspace. The bands blog linked to an online article in which they described themselves to Fader magazine as being "... collectively a libran cancerian lioness with a bit of geminiacal insanity and scorpionic fire". This co-ed four piece out of LA's Silver Lake obviously has a taste for rock that's both occult and star cross'd and it shows in the soft sounds of their melodramatic psychedelic fuzz. The female-led vocals wail and croon like a spirit astrally projecting itself through time-space for an effect that's both haunting and soothing. The voodoo priestess chant on the track "Elephant" sits around a bubbling brew that explodes with drums and guitar when each new ingredient is added. While "Burgundy" is a playful march through a haunted forest at midnight, the acoustic "Billie Holiday" channels spirits like a campfire ghost story by spelling names and covering renditions from legends past.

Warpaints myspace

Download "Elephant" on Faders Post

Communique #1:
Whaddup world?! Thanks for dropping by to check out the first installment of Want It Sonic! We're basically here to share with you all the good vibrations rolling through the underground and beyond. Obviously there is a whole wide world of music out there to report on, but hopefully we can get some support and contributions from readers in order to expand and better bring that world to you. If you have pictures of a show or festival that you went to or partied with a rockstar (or like a rockstar for that matter), Want It Sonic wants to hear about it. Feel free to drop me a line if you have any ideas for improvement, if you want to show some love, or even if you would like to pitch in some efforts to help make Want It Sonic the best it can be. Thanks again, and remember to always Want It Sonic.

Word on the Street:
Just thought I would kick up the level of anitcipation in the world with some fresh scoop on a couple of new releases in the works; after all, what kind of a first post would this be if I couldn't bring something fresh to the table?



Interpol
Despite the release of a solo-effort from frontman Paul Banks (under the name Julian Plenti), according to Spin Magazine citing the bands web post, Interpol are said to be back in the studio to record their fourth full length effort.
"We feel like a new band. We are rehearsing new songs. We find ourselves marveling at the tremendous focus that has defined our early rehearsals for this, our fourth effort."
So far there hasn't been any info released regarding the albums title or when we can plan on seeing it in stores, but the post did give insight on the sound and mindset of the band who's last album was 2007's Our Love to Admire.
"Without going into too much detail, the songs sound vital. It's as though we've hit upon a balance between our urgency and our calm. And true to our better work, this is music that unravels over time."
Spin's Article

Broken Social Scene
Also working on their fourth full length release is the Toronto-based Broken Social Scene. According to the bands website, they are currently working in Chicago with post-rock producerJohn McEntire (who has also worked with Tortoise , the Sea and Cake).
According to guitarist, Kevin Drew via web posting, "I can't tell you what this record will sound like, who from the other great bands will be involved, but I can tell you it feels amazing to be in Chicago recording."
More from Pitchfork

REM
90's Alternative legends, REM's guitarist Peter Buck and bassist Mike Mills are in Oregon recording with Tucker Martine (who produced the Decemberists’ Hazards of Love) laying down the bare bones to 14 tracks that "may or not may not appear" on their newest effort since last years Accelerate.
Buck and Mills are in the studio creating demos in hope of coercing frontman, Michael Stipe into joining them in recording.
“This record, I want it to be broader; I think Michael [Stipe] is into that. So there are some really pretty acoustic things, some really total noisy rock, and some kind of poppy stuff. It runs the gamut,” said Buck.
While Tucker Martine is helping record the demos for Stipe, Producer, Jackknife Lee will be back at the helm for the rest of the LP's recording.
For Pitchforks full article and interview with Peter Buck

Radiohead
Ladies and Gentlemen: Start salivating. After completing their most recent world tour in March, Radiohead have returned to the studio to start working on a full length follow up to 2007s music-biz-revolutionizing In Rainbows. Interviews with bassis Colin Greenwood by BBC's 6 Music were released merely days after news was dropped about Radiohead's management encouraging the band to "break-up" before In Rainbows' release.
Greenwood explained to 6 Music the bands recording progress with longtime producern Nigel Godrich by saying, “It’s at the stage where we’ve got the big Lego box out and we’ve tipped it out on the floor and we’re just looking at all the bits and thinking ‘What’s next?’ I’m very impressed and grateful for Nigel our producer and his ability to make it all sound vaguely plausible.”
Despite avoiding going into specifics, according to Rolling Stone Magazine, one of the tracks that may get a cut on the future full length is “Super Collider,” which the Oxford band premiered during their last tour.
Full BBC interview with Greenwood

Wishlist:16 Albums I want right now!
(if you have a copy, sharing is caring. :])
1. Bob Dylan Together Through Life
2. Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band Other South
3. Death Cab For Cutie The Open Door EP
4. The Decemberists The Hazards of Love
5. Devendra Banhart Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon
6. The Duchess and The Duke She's the Duchess, He's the Duke
7. Dr. Dog Fate
8. Eddie Vedder Music for the Motion Picture Into the Wild
9. Modest Mouse Satellite Skin 7" Vinyl EP
10. Heartless Bastards The Mountain
11. The Moondoggies Don't Be A Stranger
12. Silversun Pickups Swoon
13. The White Stripes Get Behind Me Satan
14. The White Stripes Icky Thump
15. Wilco Sky Blue Sky
16. Yusuf Islam/Cat Stevens Roadsinger