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Tyler, the Creator Expands Spring Tour, Adding Dates With Earl Sweatshirt

Carrie Battan — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 14:56:00 -0500

Photo by Erez Avissar

Odd Future kingpin Tyler, the Creator, who's about to release his sophomore album, has added more dates to his international spring solo tour. He'll also be joined by Earl Sweatshirt for a string of shows. Wolf, Tyler's new album, is out on April 2 through Odd Future Records. Dates below.

Tyler, the Creator:

03-15 Pittsburgh, PA - Mr. Small's
03-16 Carrboro, NC - Cat’s Cradle
03-17 Norfolk, VA - The Norva
03-18 Washington, DC - U Street Music Hall
03-20 Buffalo, NY - Town Ballroom
03-21 Boston, MA - Paradise Rock Club
03-22 Toronto, Ontario - Opera House
03-23 Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg
03-24 Philadelphia, PA - TLA
03-28 Paris, France - Trabendo
03-29 Berlin, Germany - Festaal Kreuzberg
03-30 London, England - Islington Academy
04-02 Los Angeles, CA - TBA
04-03 San Antonio, TX - White Rabbit
04-05 Albuquerque, NM - Sunshine Theatre
04-07 La Jolla, CA - Porter's Pub
04-08 San Luis Obispo, CA - Slo Brew
04-10 Seattle, WA - Neumos
04-11 Portland, OR - Hawthorne Theatre
04-30 Tucson, AZ - Rialto Theatre ^
05-02 Tempe, AZ - The Marquee ^
05-05 Boise, ID - Knitting Factory Concert House ^
05-07 Missoula, MT - Top Hat Lounge ^
05-08 Spokane, WA - Knitting Factory Concert House ^
05-10 Bend, OR - Midtown ^
05-11 Ashland, OR - Ashland Armory ^
05-12 Eugene, OR - Wow Hall ^
05-14 Reno, NV - Knitting Factory ^
05-15 Chico, CA - Senator Theatre ^
05-17 Sacramento, CA - Ace of Spades ^
05-18 Santa Cruz, CA - The Catalyst ^
06-21-23 Hilvarenbeek, Netherlands - Best Kept Secret Festival

^ with Earl Sweatshirt

Watch the video for the new Earl/Tyler collaboration "Whoa":

SXSW: Pitchfork's Show No Mercy With Skeletonwitch, Trash Talk, Pallbearer, and More

Pitchfork — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 14:40:00 -0500

Photos by Trent Maxwell. Above: Trash Talk. For all of our 2013 SXSW coverage, head here.

There were blues skies and warm spring breezes for a packed house at Pitchfork's Show No Mercy Day Party at House of Vans at Mohawk on Wednesday. Not exactly the most metal weather, but it didn't matter. The afternoon kicked off with Brooklyn industrial doom metal band Batillus and Chicago's Encrust. Richmond, Virginia experimental sludge crew Inter Arma came armed with a water stick and expansive songs, while Brooklyn crusts Mutilation Rites delivered a raw, filthy set.

Encrust

Forth Worth doomy deathrock duo Pinkish Black played songs from their self-titled debut. Royal Thunder vocalist Mlny Parsonz has a powerful voice that crosses genre lines, and their songs felt especially ready for a crossover on the Mohawk outdoor stage. Austin's Wet Lungs, featuring onetime Locust drummer Gabe Serbian, played a set of power violence-influenced noise rock. Arkansas doom band Pallbearer appeared at the Show No Mercy party for the second year in a row, this time with a year of touring-- and the excellent album Sorrow and Extinction-- under their belts. Trash Talk vocalist Lee Spielman had a cast on his foot, but that didn't stop him from climbing a wall or spending much of his band's typically intense set somewhere in the crowd.

Pallbearer

Next, Trash Talk's Austin cohorts and tour buddies Power Trip destroyed the indoor stage with their crossover thrash. The day was capped by Athens, Ohio quartet Skeletonwitch, who flew in for a one-off set of super tight, anthemic, and flat-out fun blackened thrash, and escaped the snow to do it.

Skeletonwitch

FOR A COMPLETE SET OF FULL-SIZE PHOTOS HEAD OVER TO OUR SLIDESHOW AND FACEBOOK PAGE.

Echo Chamber: DIIV: "Fuck SXSW"

Carrie Battan — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 13:04:00 -0500

Photo by Erez Avissar

"Hi Austin. Fuck SXSW. There… I said it.

Here, the music comes last. 5 minute set-up, no sound check, 15 minute set. The 'music' element is all a front, it's the first thing to be compromised. Corporate money everywhere but in the hands of the artists, at what is really just a glorified corporate networking party. Drunk corporate goons and other industry vampires and cocaine. Everyone is drunk, being cool. 'Official' bureaucracy and all their mindless rules. Branding, branding, branding. It's bullshit… sorry."

-- DIIV's Zachary Cole Smith is not enjoying his time in Austin. (via Tumblr)

SXSW: Eagulls

Jenn Pelly — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 12:50:00 -0500

Photo by Erez Avissar/Weird Magic. For all of our SXSW 2013 coverage, head here.

The Leeds-based melodic punk band Eagulls are not the sort of group that seems to be comfortable inside the corporate shit-show of SXSW. (Revisit their handwritten blog postfrom January, in which they decry the music industry and "all beach bands sucking each others' dicks and rubbing the press' clit.") But their set last night at the SESAC showcase at Friends, following some astonishingly terrible electro-rock-dubstep hybrid thing, was at least a sort of interesting glimpse into the types of hyper-industry showcases international bands get tacked onto when they happen to score funding to travel to the fest.

Eagulls' set was nonetheless just as engaging as when I saw them Saturday afternoon in Monterrey, Mexico for the NRMAL fest. The band's live show is more raw and amusingly deadpan than the slightly slicker EP they re-released on Deranged earlier this year, adding more deliberate nods to late 70s post-punk. (One of the guys was clad in a Gang of Four shirt.) Frontman George Mitchell and the drummer's throttling rolls carried the set forward. Mitchell, T-shirt tucked in, stumbled about shouting and gazing out entranced, a strong presence. He saved his one bit of appropriately bratty banter for the end, after slamming down his mic stand and then his mic. "We're Eagulls. If you wanna see us again then come and do it again and bring me some beer."

Lil Wayne Was Hospitalized for Seizures Again

Carrie Battan — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 12:38:00 -0500

TMZ reports that Lil Wayne was taken to a Cedars-Sinai hospital in L.A. on Tuesday night after apparently suffering "multiple seizures" following a music-video shoot. He was apparently released a few hours later and is "doing much better now." This comes after multiple hospitalizations last year, which were also pegged to seizures.

SXSW: Eddi Front

Ryan Dombal — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 12:25:00 -0500

Photo by Trent Maxwell. For all of our SXSW 2013 coverage, head here.

Behind the record-hiss atmospherics of singer-songwriter Eddi Front's recent self-titled EP, her songs take on an air of mystery. Accompanied by a pianist in a long chapel, though, there wasn't anything separating her from her audience, or her words. The stripped-down performance highlighted Front's range, or rather, lack thereof. She joked about how all of her songs are about "the end of a relationship" at one point, and her performance made that clear. The piano playing often fell into melodrama, and soon enough, her sometimes-surreal lyrics turned into the musings of a high schooler sulking during a recital. Luckily for Front, perhaps, only about 20 percent of the pews were filled for her unadorned tales of woe.

SXSW: Blue Hawaii

Ryan Dombal — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 12:16:00 -0500

Photo by Trent Maxwell. For all of our SXSW 2013 coverage, head here.

"Is that Grimes?" asked a fellow concert-goer upon seeing Blue Hawaii frontwoman Raph Standell-Preston flail and wail in front of projected jellyfish at Resident Advisor's showcase at Elysium last night. The confusion is understandable. Blue Hawaii are from Montreal. They are on Grimes' Canadian label, Arbutus. And Standell-Preston moves onstage with an endearing awkwardness-- think post-drop "Harlem Shake" moves-- just alike you know who.

Blue Hawaii's recent album Untogether offered a sparse and chilly take on the increasingly common male beatmaker/female vocalist archetype. But live, they try to be something like a proper dance act, pushing up the bass and dissolving much of their nuance in the process. "If you feel so inclined as to move, please do," said Standell-Preston at one point. Judging by the rough 50 percent head-nod ratio of this gig, Blue Hawaii are on a kind of precipice. But when inevitably judged against current like-minded artists such as Purity Ring-- who came into SXSW with a much more compelling visual and aural presentation last year-- they can't help but fall short.

Number of whoops sent up by the audience after skinny button pusher Alexander Cowan unbuttoned his shirt to reveal a tank top underneath: 1

Admirably emo pre-show confession: "We just need a second to ourselves
to, like, hug-- I'm sorry if that's unprofessional." -- Raph Standell-Preston

Times Standell-Preston's voice reminded me of Bjork's: 12

Phrases that could describe Blue Hawaii's dance moves: hippity-hoppity, excitable toddler after eating four lollipops, panicked air traffic controller, contagiously amateur

SXSW: Chvrches

Ryan Dombal — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 12:04:00 -0500

Photo by Trent Maxwell. For all of our SXSW 2013 coverage, head here.

Up and coming Glasgow three-piece Chvrches have songs. Good ones. And quite a few. Several of the songs they played last night are not yet released, and they sounded like the types of tracks many people could volunteer to listen to many times. Some of the packed crowd already knew most of the words to singles "Recover" and "The Mother We Share". And with their upcoming LP due out this fall on Glassnote (Phoenix, Mumford & Sons), it should get the chance it deserves to find an even more rapt audience. (While Red 7's outdoor space was full during the Windish Agency's showcase, most of the assembled seemed about as interested in their own conversations as they were with the band onstage).

But still, Chvrches are not ready for prime time just yet. Singer Lauren Mayberry is gifted with an expressive singing voice and a fine, simple taste for melody, but at this show she didn't seem totally convinced of her own talents. For most of the night, she was front and center, flanked by her two keyboard-pushing bandmates. But she may have looked more comfortable on the one track in which she played keys herself while Martin Doherty took the center of the stage. Doherty's voice is much less distinctive than Mayberry's, though his intensity, his in-the-moment-ness was superior. The hard part is pretty much done: Chvrches have the right songs. Now it's time to make them really connect live.

SXSW: Yeah Yeah Yeahs

Ryan Dombal — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 11:47:00 -0500

Photos by Trent Maxwell. For all of our SXSW 2013 coverage, head here.

Karen O should never, ever be taken for granted. Ten years into the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, she has reached national treasure status-- a fact pushed forth by her giddy, silly, terrifying, colorful performance at the NPR Music showcase at Stubb's. Giddy because she could not stop smiling, clearly reveling in being back onstage after a few years elsewhere. Silly because she's still pulling out that insane, bratty Gremlins voice to maximum effect, often instantly juxtaposed with her more human voice. Terrifying because she can curdle blood as well as any metal howler. And colorful because of her yellow jacket and shiny silver vest (not to mention a fluffy tinsel boa).

There were old songs (including a priceless rendition of "Art Star") and new songs (the satisfyingly twitchy title track from their forthcoming album Mosquito, a creepy slow-mover that brought to mind Fever Ray, a stomp through the single "Sacrilege" with a full gospel choir pumped in, and more). And there was "Maps", which was introduced by both Karen's Gremlin voice and non-Gremlin voice. It's like she's still a little self-conscious about "the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' love song" amidst the corroded tones of nearly every other one of the band's tracks. But it's that tension between the common and the bizarre-- the sweet and the horrible-- that has helped these guys endure.

Number of people taking videos and photos in front of me with their iPad: One, which is one too many. Note to the world: This is not an OK thing to do. When you take a picture/video with your iPad at a concert you are ruining the lives of those behind you as well as your own because those pictures will not turn out well.

Number of Karen O horror-movie-murder yelps: At least 20

Best light-giving costume piece: Karen's miner's headlamp

Number of uncontrollable grins from Karen: At least a dozen

Ratio of joy-based grins to possibly-demon-possessed grins: 1:1

Listen: The-Dream Raps, Gets Pissed Off on New Track "Tron"

Carrie Battan — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 11:39:00 -0500

The-Dream: "TRON" on SoundCloud.

The-Dream: "Parental Advisory" on SoundCloud.

Update: The-Dream has also shared "Parental Advisory", a 50-minute "retrospective mix" he made with Mick Boogie. It cycles through an assortment of his old stand-bys, from "Shawty is the Shit" to "Roc" and beyond. Listen above.

On his new single, "TRON", the-Dream attempts an angry rap track. He applies a warped filter to his vocals, rapping, "The fuck I look like, hatin' R&B niggas?/ I am R&B, nigga." Sounds like someone's been listening to "5AM in Toronto" on repeat and feeling inspired.

"TRON" is set to appear on the-Dream's upcoming album, IV Play (formerly stylized Fourplay), which is out on May 7.

Watch Dream in an episode of Pitchfork.tv's "+1":

SXSW: Nü Sensae

Jenn Pelly — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 11:30:00 -0500

Photo by Erez Avissar/Weird Magic. For all of our SXSW 2013 coverage, head here.

Nü Sensae accomplished more in 15 minutes last night than some bands of similar raging noise-punk nature will manage all week of this fest. Tearing through "Swim" and other tracks from last year's excellent Sundowning (released by Suicide Squeeze, who co-presented the showcase), their chemistry exploded. On record, Nü Sensae's dynamic force builds upon its members equally-- Andrea Lukic's startlingly visceral howls, guitarist Brody McKnight's wall of noise. But live drummer Daniel Pitout is heavy and fierce as hell (which makes his angelic all-white bleach-blonde ensemble sort of great), raising his arms above his head to strike maximum damage with mostly every hit of the kit.

SXSW: White Lung

Jenn Pelly — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 11:22:00 -0500

Photo by Erez Avissar/Weird Magic. For all of our SXSW 2013 coverage, head here.

The conditions of last night's White Lung show at the Enabler PR showcase at Holy Mountain were ideal by SXSW standards. It was just after 1 a.m., fellow Vancouver punk act Nü Sensae had just finished in the next room, and the front row was packed. You don't want see White Lung with too much breathing room.

Frontwoman Mish Way is one of punk's most frenetic presences and she led the group rocketspeed through a set of material from last year's excellent Sorry. At various times she threw herself at the ground, curled into a ball, and jumped in place. It seemed exceedingly appropriate to be seeing White Lung just a few hours after I caught a screening of The Punk Singer, the new doc about Kathleen Hanna. Not necessarily because of aesthetic similarities between White Lung and Hanna's groups, but because at this particular White Lung show, I was up front claiming space, surrounded by other girls, and that felt awesome.

SXSW: Waxahatchee

Jenn Pelly — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 11:08:00 -0500

Photo by Erez Avissar/Weird Magic; for all of our SXSW 2013 coverage, head here.

If Waxahatchee's new record, Cerulean Salt, has cast its spell on you, then it's perfectly reasonable to consider seeing the trio play twice in one evening. Their first set, inside Stubb's during NPR Music's showcase, felt at first like a photoshoot we all got to hang out for, with a comical amount of cameras distracting from the austere solo material Katie Crutchfield opened with.

Later, at 12:20 a.m. at the Enabler PR showcase at Holy Mountain, they blasted through a short set in more comfortable environs. Since assembling in November, Waxahatchee's live band has strengthened its repertoire, revamping several tracks from Crutchfield's fully acoustic 2012 record American Weekend-- "Be Good", "Grass Stain", and "American Weekend"-- into full-band affairs. The latter track took on a particularly heavy, slow, almost grunge feel. Though the acoustic songs may carry more intimate, piercing bite, the plugged-in versions certainly have their merits. Her band exhibits poised restraint, pulling back when it matters most, and some of their most affecting moments are when Crutchfield drops her guitar and it's just voice, a slow, heavy beat, and huge, unbridled emotion.

SXSW: Kathleen Hanna Doc The Punk Singer Reveals Truth Behind Hanna's Retreat From the Stage

Jenn Pelly — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 10:49:00 -0500

For all of our SXSW 2013 coverage, head here.

The Punk Singer is Kathleen Hanna's life story so far, but it's also a coming out journey of sorts. Directed by Sini Anderson, the film chronicles Hanna's years pioneering riot grrrl with Bikini Kill, recording as Julie Ruin, and performing in Le Tigre, with interviews by Carrie Brownstein, Corin Tucker, Kim Gordon, Tavi Gevinson, and more. But it also offers a look into Hanna's life today, offering details about health struggles that she had previously kept private.

Anderson does an exceptional job contextualizing Hanna's role in the riot grrrl movement, using news reports of current events that fueled its participants, plus offering an explanation of first and second wave feminism. Among the many archival clips here are early footage of Hanna doing spoken word in Olympia and of the Jenny Holzer-inspired visual art and photography she produced in college. At one particularly powerful moment, Hanna demands, "All girls to the front! I'm not kidding!"

Lighter moments of the film explain the radical element of speaking with a Valley Girl tone, or find Hanna's husband, Beastie Boys' Adam Horovitz, recalling the first time he watched the early Hanna interview she conducted in a ski mask. He calls her home-recorded 1997 Julie Ruin LP a "masterpiece" and says it's the record that made Kathleen a real musician. (Hanna also recalls inspiring Horowitz to give his 1999 MTV Awards speech in response to the rapes that year at Woodstock, and helping to write the speech.)

But the film progresses into more somber shades as Hanna recalls the tons of hate mail she received during Bikini Kill, telling her to die. Friends worried about her safety. And when Bikini Kill ended in 1997, it was not without tension.

Hanna ultimately reveals that she is currently suffering from late stage Lyme disease. Health concerns, not spent songwriting, caused her to pause Le Tigre. "I lied when I said I was done," Hanna says."I just didn't want to have to face the fact that I was really sick. I was told by my body that I had to stop."

"I told the world that I chose to stop playing music," she said. "That felt better than facing the reality of not being able to do what I love more than anything in the world."

The footage is emotional, following Hanna to the doctor's office. One diaristic clip shot by Hanna documents the debilitating after effects of her medication; she cries, illustrating why she couldn't be on stage then. It's moving to hear Hanna speak of how she has struggled with a disease that few people understand, but she compares it to her lifelong feminism. She understands it, and that matters. This is fearless independence applied anew.

Watch: Joanna Newsom Covers Sandy Denny's "The North Star Grassman and the Ravens"

Carrie Battan — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 10:22:00 -0500

Joanna Newsom's music-making engine is slowly revving back up. She's recorded a gorgeous cover of "The North Star Grassman and the Ravens", originally by British folk singer-songwriter Sandy Denny.

There's a video to go along with the cover, directed by Maximilla Lukacs for an upcoming fashion line from Melissa Coker's Wren label. It pictures Newsom in the woods, hanging out with owls, playing the harp in gorgeous landscapes-- pretty much right where you'd left her in your mind. Watch it below, via Gorilla vs Bear.

SXSW: Iggy and the Stooges

Evan Minsker — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 10:11:00 -0500

Photos by Colin Kerrigan. For all of our SXSW 2013 coverage, head here.

By this point, of course a Stooges concert is formulaic: They break out some gems from their back catalog and Iggy flails around onstage like a deranged ape. (At the Vans/Fat Possum showcase at Mohawk, they opened with "Raw Power" and "Gimme Danger".) But this is the fucking Stooges we're talking about here. These are classic songs played loud and sung by one of rock'n'roll's greatest frontmen. Even when the mix was blown out, it was still abundantly clear that James Williamson's guitar, Mike Watt's bass, and Steve Mackay's saxophone were all near flawless at every turn. (Seriously, Williamson's "Search and Destroy" solo sounded almost identical to the one on Raw Power.)

But those were the classic songs, and the Stooges came to SXSW to debut material from their new album.

Lest you've already forgotten The Weirdness, new Stooges material can be sort of a disaster. But to the band's credit, the new stuff earned a well-earned warm reception from the crowd. The band ripped through the new tracks with the same energy they brought to their old stuff and Iggy can still deliver a killer vocal performance. Unfortunately, the lyrics occasionally seeped through the barrage of guitar heroics, revealing egregious lines like "I'm on my knees for those double Ds."

But as one of the best live bands of all time, the Stooges can take some mediocre songs and sell them like pros (i.e. with very loud guitars.) Do any of their new songs meet the bar they set between 1969 and 1973? Not at all. But even with a couple of duds, the Stooges will probably be one of the most exciting things I'll see in Austin this week. Also, it turns out, people still love "I Wanna Be Your Dog".

Between-sets music for the coming punk rock onslaught: "O Fortuna"

People in the front rows want to: Touch Iggy Pop

Iggy Pop wants to: Hold all of their hands and occasionally spit on them

Photographer Colin Kerrigan: Had to dry Iggy Pop spit off of his camera

Very notably playing air guitar in the background: Japandroids' Brian King

Steve Mackay fashion choice: Maracas matched vest

A very real fear: Iggy threatened to whip his cock out

SXSW: Earl Sweatshirt (With Flying Lotus as Captain Murphy)

Evan Minsker — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 09:45:00 -0500

Photos by Colin Kerrigan. For all of our SXSW coverage, head here.

The crowd watching Earl Sweatshirt waited to go nuts. While he rapped a series of new songs standing next to Flying Lotus, the audience stood quietly and paid attention, for the most part. This is new music from Earl, after all-- one of the best rappers in the game right now-- and they didn't want to miss a moment of it. For this audience, they were important-- they were the first glimpses into Doris. (They went nuts when he closed with "Earl".)

Here's the other thing that's become increasingly apparent about Earl since his return to America: He's figured out how to work the crowd. Sure, it helps when Flying Lotus is your hype man and you have Odd Future's finest stoner Domo Genesis on stage to back you up. But Earl moved around the stage with confidence. This isn't the same timid Earl who was thrust onto the stage with Odd Future in New York. It's a more assertive Earl-- one that's ready to hit the festival circuit.

Also: It's extremely weird to see one of the greatest DJs and producers around just sort of stand on stage, play backing tracks, and serve as a glorified hype man. (Never thought I'd say this, but I sort of hope FlyLo starts using Raaaandy-style air horns.)

Earl on what song to do next: [To Flying Lotus] "You pick."

Dom's face during "Chum": Absolute glee.

Flying Lotus' monosyllabic hypeman moment: "YEAH."

If the audience is allowed to spell the words "golf wang": They will get excited.

Introduction for the super intense track "Earl": "This is a pretty cool lil song to end the night with, pretty mellow..."

SXSW: Wavves

Evan Minsker — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 09:39:00 -0500

Photo by Colin Kerrigan. For all of our SXSW 2013 coverage, head here.

"Can you ever get tired of moshing along to 'Idiot'?", we asked last year. It's 2013, Wavves are back at SXSW, and here's a firm answer: No. You can't get tired of doing that. Wavves opened their set with "Idiot", and even though Nathan Williams' band has a new album on the way, the group's set at the Life or Death PR showcase at the Scoot Inn only featured two new songs: "Sail to the Sun" and "Demon to Lean On". Despite some sound issues during "Sail to the Sun", the band delivered a tight, solid set. Sure, Williams could've unveiled more new stuff from Afraid of Heights, but at this point, he knows that he's got a pile of catchy, festival-ready tracks in his arsenal.

SXSW: Unknown Mortal Orchestra

Evan Minsker — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 09:26:00 -0500

Photos by Colin Kerrigan. For all of our SXSW 2013 coverage, head here.

It's fun watching people trying to dance to Unknown Mortal Orchestra's "Ffunny Friends". On its face, it's a track that's just funky enough to sound like you could dance to it. The result: A crowd of people awkwardly and rhythmically pumping their hands without fully committing. The song kicked off a fine if pedestrian set from UMO, whose Krautrock guitar sound paled in comparison to the two also-mellow sets that immediately preceded it: Mac DeMarco's and DIIV's. UMO's saving grace? They closed with a cover of Jay Reatard's "My Shadow". Even if their version lacked the vocal bite of Jay's original, it showed that these dudes benefit when they inject some muscle into their set.

The Jay Reatard connection: Current Wavves bassist and former Reatard bassist Stephen Pope was present

UMO hat status: Two backwards, one frontwards

Mosh pit activity: Not a lot.

Quote from UMO's Ruban Nielson that could apply to some of their set: "It's a shit show!"

Preview the Track TNGHT Produced for the New Lil Wayne Album, Featuring Nicki Minaj

Carrie Battan — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 08:44:00 -0500

What 2013-era Lil Wayne lacks in judgment or music quality, he makes up for (sort of) in collaborative savvy. Turns out he's recruited production duo du jour TNGHT (Hudson Mohawke and Lunice) for his new record, I Am Not a Human Being II. The pair made a beat for the track "Lay It Down", which features Nicki Minaj.

I Am Not a Human Being II is out on March 26. Listen to snippets from each song, including "Lay It Down" (around the 7:40 mark) below, via FACT.

Watch Future freestyle over a TNGHT beat in an episode of Pitchfork.tv's "Selector":

Hear a Clip of Jay-Z and Kendrick Lamar's Joint "Bitch Don't Kill My Vibe" Remix

Laura Snapes — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 06:50:00 -0500

Photo by Ebru Yildiz

Longtime Jay-Z associate Young Guru DJ'd SXSW last night, and snuck a preview of a pretty exciting collaboration into his set: Jay-Z and Kendrick Lamar appear to have worked together on a remix of good kid, m.A.A.d city's "Bitch Don't Kill My Vibe". Check out some fan-shot footage of the moment below. As Billboard points out, Jay comes in at 1:39, with the classy opener "Up in the clouds/ Me and my spouse/ Rumors on the ground/ Getting too loud/ Turn that shit down."

Watch Yeah Yeah Yeahs Perform New Songs at SXSW

Laura Snapes — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 05:35:00 -0500

Last night at SXSW, Yeah Yeah Yeahs appeared at NPR's Stubbs showcase, alongside Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Youth Lagoon, Waxahatchee, and Le1f, among others.

YYYs performed several new songs from their forthcoming album Mosquito (due April 16 via Interscope), including the title track, "Under the Earth", "Subway", and single "Sacrilege". Karen O's "Elvis in Vegas, Bootsy Collins, James Brown, Elton John" look is also on full display, which she recently discussed in an Update interview with Carrie Battan.

Watch good quality footage of their whole set below (albeit with quite tinny sound):

Watch Justin Timberlake Perform "Let the Groove Get In" and Sing With Michael McDonald on "Fallon"

Evan Minsker and Laura Snapes — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 04:58:00 -0500

Justin Timberlake made his third appearance this week on "Late Night With Jimmy Fallon" last night. Following his performances of The 20/20 Experience songs "Pusher Love Girl" and "Mirrors", he did another new cut, "Let the Groove Get In", where he was joined by the Roots.

Fallon and Timberlake kept the week's high-jinks alive with a collaboration with Michael McDonald; the three sang "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" in the round, with Fallon and Timberlake dressed up as the former Doobie Brother/Steely Dan singer. If that fake beard's anything to go by, Timberlake is gonna be one handsome grandpa.

Watch both of last night's videos below, along with some extra clips from Tuesday night's show where Timberlake and Steve Carrell take part in a fairly self-explanatory segment called "Real People, Fake Arms".

"Let the Groove In":

"Row, Row, Row Your Boat" (ft. Michael McDonald and Jimmy Fallon)

Real People, Fake Arms:

Phoenix's New Album Bankrupt Will Feature 71 Bonus Tracks on Its Deluxe Edition

Corban Goble — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 16:10:00 -0500

The new album from French rockers Phoenix, Bankrupt!, is out April 23 in the U.S. and April 22 in the UK via Loyaute/Glassnote. Today, they announced they'll be releasing an extensive deluxe edition of the record that will feature a full hour of extras. In total, 71 "demos & sketches" (!) will be included in the package, which is now available to pre-order on iTunes. The album itself is only 41 minutes long.

In other Phoenix news, the band will be the musical guest on the April 6 episode of "Saturday Night Live" alongside host Melissa McCarthy.

Watch the recent visual for "Entertainment" below:

Watch Divine Fits Perform a New Song at SXSW

Carrie Battan — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 15:50:00 -0500

The members of supergroup Divine Fits (Wolf Parade/Handsome Furs' Dan Boeckner, Spoon's Britt Daniel, and New Bomb Turks' Sam Brown) are SXSW veterans by now, but this marks their first year playing the festival in their current incarnation. And they're using it to roll out new music. Watch them play a new, yet-unnamed song at Mohawk last night, via You Ain't No Picasso.

After the clip, watch the band in an episode of Pitchfork.tv's "+1".