February 2, 2004


South By Southwest:
Ahem. The following is Matador's bill for the event we've yet to come up with a suitable title or slogan for.

Mission Of Burma
Pretty Girls Make Graves
Preston School Of Industry
Seachange

This monumental bill will be take the stage on Thursday night, March 18 at La Zona Rosa, 612 W. 4th St., Austin, TX.

[Not Wednesday as previously reported here!]

Dizzee Rascal:
As the press acclaim & airplay continues to build for 'Boy In Da Corner', Dizzee Rascal is about to make his North American live debut this week, with a Thursday Feb. 5 appearance at Toronto's Mod Club. He'll be in NYC this Saturday, Feb. 7 at Volume, and forthcoming on Feb. 10 is Dizzee's U.S. network TV debut on ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live".



We can also confirm that Dizzee is on the bill for the Coachella Valley Music Festival, Indio, CA on May 2.

Mogwai return to the US:
And a piece of late-breaking news: Mogwai will also be playing the Coachella festival, on the same date as Dizzee, May 2.

Mission Of Burma - ONoffOn:

Sorry if we were cagey about the details last time. On May 4, we'll be releasing the first new studio recordings in 22 years from Mission Of Burma, the Boston avant-rockers whose early works for the Ace Of Hearts label helped stake their claim as one of the American Underground's most influential and important bands.

Recorded this past autumn with Bob Weston and original producer Rick Harte, 'ONoffOn' is a work of staggering complexity showcasing a group just as ahead of their time in 2004 as they were in 1982. The trio of Roger Miller (guitar, vocals), Clint Conley (bass, vocals) and Peter Prescott (drums, vocals) (augmented by Bob Weston on tape loops) have completed an album brimming with all the raw power of their debut, yet revealing tones, textures and lyrical themes unimaginable the first time around. For our money, this isn't just a hot new release, it's a goddamn cultural event.

The 16 track CD is divided into 2 sets, much like the band's recent performances, with a brief silent intermission (well, briefer than the intermission at the gigs). The vinyl version of 'ONOffON' will include 1 bonus track, a cover of The Dils' 'Class War'.

Said double vinyl version will be mastered in true all-analog from the 2-inch master tape at Sterling Sound - guaranteed no digital stages - and will be pressed in 180-gram vinyl at RTI in California. The CD version will be released in both CD and hybrid SACD-CD format - Matador's first Super Audio Compact Disc.

Mission Of Burma will be playing their first ever gig in the great state of Texas when they headline Matador's evening at South By Southwest in Austin, TX, Wednesday March 18, alongside Pretty Girls Make Graves, Preston School Of Industry and Seachange.

Burma will also be hitting the UK in early April, as they play Stephen Malkmus' night at All Tomorrow's Parties in Camber Sands, Rye on April 2. A London show is planned for April 3, with details to follow.

Seachange:
As we prepare for the March 8 UK release of 'Lay Of The Land', we've posted our 2nd MP3 from Seachange's Matador debut CD/LP, "News From Nowhere". A UK CD /7" of said track will be released at the end of this month.

Seachange are about to start a UK tour in support of Oceansize, followed by additional dates in the UK and Germany with Pretty Girls Make Graves. The band are also making preparations for their first shows in North America.

Guided By Voices:
Guided By Voices recently returned to Waterloo Studios (parts of Universal Truths and Cycles was recorded there) in Kent, Ohio to record songs for their next full length release. The band recorded 15 songs with Todd Tobias once again in the producer's chair. The album should be out on Matador in the second half of 2004.

Never one to wait until the next GBV release, Bob was in Kent this past weekend working on his next solo album, Fiction Man. The album is due out on Fading Captain in March. In the same vein as Speak Kindly of Your Volunteer Fire Department, Bob wrote all the songs, while Todd Tobias plays all the instruments.

GBV on the road:

March 5 - Trees, Dallas, TX
March 6 - La Zona Rosa, Austin TX
March 8 - Blue Note, Columbia MO
March 9 - Mississippi Nights, St. Louis, MO
March 11 - Little Brother's, Columbus OH
March 12 - Headliners, Louisville KY
March 13 - Bluebird, Bloomington IN

Preston School Of Industry:
The new CD/LP 'Monsoon' is coming out next week, with three quicktime videos on the CD version (not 2 as the title sticker says). You can catch Spiral & band at Seattle's Sonic Boom (Ballard store) playing live on the evening of release, Monday, February 17 at 8pm.

In addition to a full US tour starting on March 10, PSOI will be playing the Noise Pop festival in San Francisco on February 29 [not February 28 as previously reported], and they'll be playing live on Seattle's KEXP on March 9. Along with their slot on the Matador gig during SXSW, Preston School Of Industry are playing a free show at Austin's Urban Outfitters (2406 Guadalupe) on Saturday, March 20 at 3pm.

Preston School Of Industry will be touring the US and Canada coast-to-coast in March and April.

iTunes:
With each passing week, we're adding more new & old Matador titles to the iTunes Music Store. Among the recent additions are albums from Robert Pollard, Thalia Zedek, Arab Strap, Lesser, Matmos, Silkworm, Yo La Tengo, Mogwai, Tommy Keene, Pizzicato Five, Railroad Jerk, Chavez and Aereogramme. Check it out and let us know what you think.

TOUR DATING:
please take a gander at our tour listings. Along with all the action described above, we've got new excursions planned for Pretty Girls Make Graves (US, UK and Germany), Cat Power (US, UK and France), Yo La Tengo (UK), Dead Meadow and Mary Timony.

Matador staff and artists let you know what they're wasting their time with:

David Sheppard, The Wisdom Of Harry
I've been royally entertained by these recent records from the Americas...

The Innocence Mission - Befriended
Rachel's - Systems/Layers
Peggy Honeywell - Honey For Dinner
Town & Country - 5
Laura Veirs - Carbon Glacier
Sun Kil Moon album.
And had my mind blown byÐLou Harrison's Symphony #4 played by the BBC Symphony at the Barbican.
God preserve the BBC.

Sujan Hong, Beggars Group
My favorite movies of 2003:
Spellbound
City of God
Raising Victor Vargas
American Splendor
Triplets of Belleville
Blue Gate Crossing
Etre et Avoir
Capturing the Friedmans
The Man Without a Past
Marooned in Iraq
L'Homme du train

My least favorite movies of 2003:
Party Monster
Thirteen
Matrix Reloaded
Laurel Canyon
10
Gerry

Dave Martin, Matador Records
1. Valentinos - Aerosol Dream b/w Tell Me That It's Over - Tom Perkins Entertainment
2. Modey Lemon - Predator EP - Birdman
3. Ghost - Hypnotic Underworld - Drag City
4. Ponys - Laced With Romance - In The Red
5. Speed, Glue & Shinki - S/T & Eve
6. OOIOO - Kila Kila Kila - Thrill Jockey
7. Dan Melchior's Broke Revue - Remote Control b/w Like A Fox - Troubleman
8. Overhang Party - Outtakes from 1996-2003 - CDR
9. Rose Tattoo - S/T - EMI
10. Mötley Crüe - Too Fast For Love Leathür Records mix

Patrick Amory, Matador Records
Don Williams - I Believe In You (MCA LP)
Mockingbirds - I Never Should Have Kissed You (ABC/Paramount 7")
Mockingbirds - I Can Feel We're Parting (Columbia UK 7")
Acid Gallery - Dance Round The Maypole (Columbia UK 7")
Incredible String Band - The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter (Elektra LP)
Wormdoom - Last Days Boogie (Twisted Village LP)
The Water Into Wine Band - Harvest Time (private LP)
Vision of Sunshine - Vision of Sunshine (Avco Embassy LP)
Fleetwood Mac - Then Play On (Reprise UK steamboat label LP)
Boccherini - Musica notturna di Madrid (Schwann Musica Mundi LP)
T.S. Bonniwell - Close (Capitol LP)
Mission Of Burma - anything and everything

Gerard Cosloy, Matador Records
Metal Urbain - Anarchy In Paris ( Acute)
Mr. Airplane Man - C'mon DJ (Sympathy For The Record Industry)
The Buff Medways - 1914 (Transcopic)
Paul Westerberg - Come Feel Me Tremble (Vagrant)
Califone - Heron King Blues (Thrill Jockey)
I'm Not A Gun - Everything At Once (City Centre Offices)
The Kills - Keep On Your Mean Side (Domino)
Stewart Walker - Live Extracts (Persona)
Television - Live At The Old Waldorf (Rhino)