Crib Notes

Atlas Sound has a new virtual 7-inch single posted as a free download over at Deerhunter’s blog. The A-side features a cover of a bounding pop number called “Doctor” by the old school Doo-Wop group, the Five Discs.

The B-Side is a very slow bout of moonlit harmonica doodling and cooing. If you caught Atlas Sound during the most recent tour with the Selmanaires, you most likely caught a glimpse of Bradford Cox’s introduction of the wretched blues harp. It’s tough to bring said instrument into the fold while maintaining even the slightest sense of sincerity, but he seems to be working it in pretty seamlessly. But to wield it for anything more than subtle texture would be the death of the song — as such its presence alone creates beautiful, psychological tension.

The harmonica’s arrival also coincides with an equally unexpected flare for pop narrative, as portrayed on the flipside of this virtual single. But there’s a push toward conflict as well as Cox seems to have also developed an affinity for mashing-up Neil Young-style stridency, longing and melancholy in one fell swoop. Still, it’s a cool couple of songs that show him expanding his repertoire and embracing some changes stylistically while keeping a grasp on his own musical fingerprint.

“Doctor” mp3

“The Screens” mp3

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Bradford Cox has declared that Logos is an “extroverted” album that isn’t about him, but I couldn’t disagree more. The second solo full-length from Deerhunter’s leader is the inward journey of a world-weary voice dealing with the natural order of the universe — all awash in soft-focus, pop tones. Noah Lennox (aka Panda Bear) of Animal Collective lends his voice and sampling blueprints to “Walkabout,” and Stereolab’s angelic voice Laetitia Sadier drives “Quick Canal.” These couplings feel like vacations from the Id, Ego, Superego clash commencing beneath the happy exteriors of “Sheila” and “Logos.” Each is bound by fairytale bliss and distress under gorgeous façades. With repeated listens, Logos reveals greater staying power than its predecessor, and though it’s not the catchiest or the most unpredictable album Cox has made, it’s the strongest one so far under the Atlas Sound moniker. (Kranky) 4 stars out of 5

(Photo Courtesy Kranky)

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Clockwise from top: Tommy Chung, Mario Schambon, Jason and Herb Harris (Photo by Carl La Pan)

Atlas Sound fires up the tour machine once again, this time Deerhunter frontman Bradford Cox has enlisted the Selmanaires to serve as his backing band for this show of ghostly pop. Stereolab-esque post-rock Brits Broadcast play in support of their latest release, Broadcast & The Focus Group Investigate. The Selmanaires pull double duty as they open the show Thursday night, Oct. 14. $15. 8:30 p.m. The Earl. 404-522-3950.

Chad Radford: So what’s up with the Atlas Sound tour; the Selmanaires are the Atlas Sound band for the tour with Broadcast and you’re opening the shows as well?
Tommy Chung: Yes. Bradford has been collaborating with Broadcast for a little while and we were always jealous because Broadcast has been one of our favorite bands pretty much since they became a band. Bradford asked Herb if we wanted to go too, and it was like, ‘let me think about it… Um yeah!’ A week later Bradford said he was sick of being a one-man sampler show and asked how we felt about being the backing band too. It sounded cool so we did one practice with him before a Dirty Projectors show and within the first ten minutes he asked us to play that show. We learned four songs, stretched them out and did like a 10-minute cover of “What Goes On” by the Velvet Underground.

We’ve always had a connection with Deerhunter. Our very first show out was in 2003 with Deerhunter at MJQ before the Drunken Unicorn even existed. It was Deerhunter, Tabitha and we were the openers — back when we were still stand up bass, Wurlitzer and acoustic guitar. After that we pretty much played with Deerhunter every month at Lenny’s. It feels like things have come full-circle now that we’re playing with Atlas Sound.

The Selmanaires “Resonance Alright” mp3

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Tues., Oct. 13.
When not singing and playing guitar for critical darlings TV on the Radio, Kyp Malone is a perennial songwriter whose work – as a solo artist and with the band Iran – has remained a sleeper. Malone’s latest, self-titled offering under the name RAIN MACHINE finds him spilling a mixed bag of jazz, bluegrass, funk and sometimes subdued, sometimes blistering guitar excursions. Naturally, this swan dive into free-form musical strumming lands on the personal, self-indulgent, humdrum side, but if you’re patient, his eclectic palette and sobering voice and rhythms are rich with anti-pop depth. Neo-folk songstress Sharon Van Etten opens. The Earl $15-$17. 8:30 p.m. , 488 Flat Shoals Ave. 404-522-3950.

Rain Machine, “Smiling Black Faces” mp3

Wed., Oct. 14
Super Soul Party w/ the Soulphonics & Ruby Velle. No cover before 10 p.m. $5 after. The Star Bar. 437 Moreland Ave. 404-681-9018.

(Thee Oh Sees photo courtesy 230 Publicity)

Wed., Oct. 14
With his latest In The Red-released LP, Help, San Francisco guitarist/auteur John Dwyer fronts Thee Oh Sees to summon the demons of West Coast psychedelia circa ‘68, then swan-dives into scorched ether, melody and distortion.Mobile, Alabama resident doom wave rockers Wizard Sleeve and Indiana post-punks TV Ghost open. $8 (adv). $10 (door). 8:30 p.m. The Earl. 404-522-3950.

(Atlas Sound photo by Lockett Pundt)

Thurs., Oct. 15
ATLAS SOUND, BROADCAST, SELMANAIRES Atlas Sound fires up the tour machine once again, this time Deerhunter frontman Brandford Cox has enlisted the Selmanaires to serve as his backing band for this show of ghostly pop drones. Stereolab-esque post-rock Brits Broadcast play in support of their latest release, Broadcast & The Focus Group Investigate. The Selmanaires pull double duty as they open the show. $15. 8:30 p.m. The Earl. 404-522-3950.

Atlas Sound feat. Noah Lennox “Walkabout” mp3

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Head over to the Deerhunter/Atlas Sound/Lotus Plaza blog where you can download Atlas Sound’s cover of Fleetwood Mac’s “Walk A Thin Line” from the album Tusk. It’s a pleasant reinterpretation of the original version that takes on an even more ethereal hue than the disconnected context of the song as it originally appeared on Tusk. Here it has the trademark slow strum, reverb and Bradford Cox’s melancholy falsetto that has come to define Atlas Sound, and it sounds quite nice.

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Some time ago, I was invited over to Bradford Cox’s house to do an interview for Signal To Noise magazine when his debut Atlas Sound full-length, Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel, was about to be released.

During that interview he gave me a preview of some new stuff that he had been working on that was to take shape as his next full-length, Logos. I am duty bound not to reveal any details related to anything about the album, but I can say that it is an absolute monster.

The bottom-end on some of the songs was so powerful that it literally rattled books and CDs off of the shelf when he played it.

When some rough versions of the album’s songs were leaked last year, I worried that the project would be scrapped. But last week news went public that the album is being released in the States via Kranky on Oct. 20. It seems that a host of other musicians have come on-board to contribute to the album as well, including Panda Bear from Animal Collective, Laetitia Sadier of Stereolab and Sasha Vine of Sian Alice Group.

News of the album’s release came with a note from Cox:

My last album was a bedroom laptop type thing. Very introverted. Logos is an album that was recorded all over the world. It’s not about me. There are collaborations with other musicians. The lyrics are not autobiographical. The view is a lot more panoramic and less close-up. I became bored with introspection. This was also the case Deerhunter’s ‘Microcastle’ LP, which was written during the same period.

I started recording December of 2007. I recorded the first version of the album, which was not intended for release. Due to some unfortunate mistakes on my part, this “sketch” of the album was leaked. Many of the songs where simply “placeholders,” songs I created quickly to help design the “arc” of the album.

I did not react well to the leak, in retrospect. It became the kind of internet-fueled drama that I was quickly learning to despise. I had always desired to speak through music, not blog posts and interviews, etc. I considered abandoning the project.

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This Sat., March 21 Cameli’s Pizza in the Kroger plaza on Ponce de Leon Avenue is celebrating 13 years of serving gourmet pies with an anniversary show.

Such lauded local art-punk, shoegazer and otherwise experimental bands Atlas Sound, Abby and Go Go and Facehugger are all lined-up to perform.

The party takes place in the space directly underneath Cameli’s at 699 Ponce de Leon Ave., which used to be Inavox several years back.

Cover charge is $8. Music starts at 9 p.m.

… and the best part, there will be free pizza served all night long.

(Photo by Hisham Bharoocha)

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Hot on the heels of a September/October North American tour stint opening up for Stereolab, Atlas Sound (a.k.a. Bradford Cox of Deerhunter) has perpetrated a cool and crystalline remix of “Neonbeanbag” from Stereolab’s latest full-length Chemical Chords.

The so-called “Southern Baptist Remix” isn’t a huge departure from the song’s original version. The tweaks and vibrant textures that Cox adds to the song are used more to flesh out the parts of the song that already exists, rather than turn it into something new.

To listen to Atlas Sound’s remix of Stereolab’s “Neon Beanbag” click here.

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Yesterday afternoon Pitchfork posted some photos from the Stereolab / Atlas Sound show that took place at The 40 Watt Club over the weekend. Check them out here.

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This is perhaps the best Friday this city has seen in a long time, and if you’re looking to go out and see some shows tonight, you’re in luck, but you’re going to have to make some executive decisions.

First and foremost there is the screening of Michael Tully and Matthew Robison’s documentary film, Silver Jew showing over at Eyedrum.

Robison, who is also involved with the Atlanta rock doc., We Fun (currently in production) will be in attendance. $5. 9 p.m. (doors) Film starts at 10 p.m. Money from door sales goes to B Jay Womack who was recently diagnosed with terminal cancer. 404-522-0655. www.eyedrum.org.

Over at Lenny’s Intelligence, Gentleman Jesse, Vera Fang and HOWLIES are playing a FREE show over at Lenny’s. Intelligence is at the forefront of the new no-wave junk-rock art clatter that so dominates the cutting edge of abrasive post-punk in 2008. The group’s sound is brash, damaged, alien and filled with angst and hooks. Local power-pop ambassador Gentleman Jesse brings things back to a more earthbound pop sound with a triumphant return to the stage. Vera Fang and Howlies open. 9 p.m. 404-577-7721. www.lennysbar.com.

Stereolab photo by Sabrina Tabuchi

The Variety Playhouse plays host to Stereolab’s stop in support of Chemical Chords, the group’s best album in years. Stereolab’s penchant for crafting droning rhythms, Moog jams and space-age bachelor-pad music set a precedent for experimental sounds in the ’90s. With Chemical Chords (their 4AD debut), the pop explorers churn out their catchiest songs this side of the millennium. Recent material such as “Pop Molecule,” “Cellulose Sunshine” and “Daisy Click Clack” channel the “groop’s” cosmic music into digestible bursts of short pop songs. Tonight, expect nothing less than a headlong trip into melancholia and ’60s psych pop, sans kitsch. Atlas Sound (aka Deerhunter’s Bradford Cox) also performs. Herb and Jason Harris of the Selmanaires open. $20-$22.50. 8:30 p.m. , 1099 Euclid Ave. 404-524-7354. www.variety-playhouse.com.

There’s a Hank Williams Sr. tribute show at The Star Bar, featuring Slim Chance, Dave Weil (Blacktop Rockets), Caroline Engel, Phil Anderson, Bill Fleming, Danny Pope, Craig Rafuse, Ted Weldon and several others (and just so you know, this is a non-smoking event). $10. 9 p.m. 404-681-5740. www.starbar.net.

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In keeping with last year’s music issue I’ve compiled a list of my 10 favorite local releases that came down the line between May ’07 and May ’08.

If I had to single out the best Atlanta label for this year, thus far there’s no doubt that it would be Douche Master Records. But the label’s reach has extended far beyond Atlanta over the last year. Excellent singles in the DM catalogue by groups, such as Hex Error and Cheap Time, as well as the Black & White’s self-titled full-length are all worthy of note, but they don’t fit into the category of a “local release.” The one significant local release from Douche Master this year is the reissue of Carbonas’ “Black Out” single … Is it a faux paw to list reissues in the year’s best of list? I think so … But it’s worthy of an honorable mention. The “Black Out” single is a good companion to Carbonas’ third full-length, which shows a tremendous amount of growth on the group’s part. Vocalist Greg King’s voice sounds so much more controlled than it has on previous releases and the group’s grasp on tight, manic melodies in songs, like “Phone Booth” and “Ass Vogel” are so much more refined than any of the group’s previous records that it easily eclipses anything else to come out of Atlanta this year.

I also want to make a note about including the Selmanaires 7-inch in this list and not the album, The Air Salesmen. Whenever I play the CD I catch myself skipping to the tracks from the single. As soon as they’re finished I play them again, rather than letting the rest of the songs play out. For me, the single, “Just to Get Your Love” b/w “Verdigris Intrigue” are such powerful songs that they outshine the rest of the album.

So here’s my list…

1.) Carbonas — Carbonas (Goner Records)
2.) Atlas Sound — Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See but Cannot Feel (Kranky)
3.) Zoroaster — Dog Magic (Terminal Doom Records/Battle Kommand Records)
4.) The Black Lips — Good Bad Not Evil (Vice)
5.) Baby Shakes — “Tell Me Now,” “Baby, It’s You,” “Come On, Babe” 10-inch (Rob’s House Records)
6.) Anna Kramer & the Lost Cause – The Rustic Contemporary Sounds Of… (International Hits)
7.) The Coathangers – The Coathangers (Rob’s House Records)
8.) The Selmanaires — “Just To Get Your Love” 7-inch (International Hits)
9.) Noot d’ Noot – “Jiggle City” 7-inch (Solutionist)
10.) Daniel Clay – The Protestant (Self-released)

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SOLO DEERHUNTER: Bradford Cox does his thing at his Atlas Sound CD release performance, Tues., Feb. 19.

Click here to read Mosi Reeves’ story on Cox and his new release.

(All photos by Alan Friedman)

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Today, MTV.com columnist James Montgomery posted a long essay arguing that Deerhunter is the best band of the year. Noting how Bradford Cox recently announced on Deerhunter’s blog that the band is going on hiatus, Montgomery writes:

Yes, I am aware that their first album, the demurely titled Turn It Up F—-t, came out in 2005. But from January to November of 2007, no band mattered more to people like me than Deerhunter. They were divisive (primarily because they learned very early on just how to work the hype machine), they were difficult and they were much-discussed. And they knew all this, which is why it was so brilliant (and incredibly fitting) when they announced their hiatus the way they did. It was a supremely meta moment — blog band announces hiatus via blog — one that encapsulated 2007 (and to a larger extent, the entire decade) in a way that In Rainbows didn’t.

Montgomery overstates his case somewhat. When I ran into Deerhunter guitarist Lockett Pundt at MJQ several weeks ago, he informally told me that the band would go on vacation at the end of the year, get back together several months later, and have a new album ready for release in the fall of 2008. Who knows what the future will hold?

At any rate, Deerhunter is scheduled to join the Black Lips, Snowden and the Selmanaires for Stomp and Stammer’s 11th anniversary party at the Variety Playhouse on Fri., Nov. 30. More on that later.

Meanwhile, Cox is moving forward with his Atlas Sound project. He was recently featured on the cover of the Fader (see above photo), and is preparing to release his solo debut next year. Atlas Sound’s Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel drops Feb. 19 on Kranky Records.

In a press release, Cox dedicated the album to his friend Lockett Pundt: “It has a lot to do with childhood. I wanted to make an album that was uplifting but honest, which is why it seems sad a lot of the time. I want to make music that could be ‘healing’ or therapeutic to people who relate to it.”

The track listing for Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel is below.

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It’s hard to believe it’s already been a year since Lenny’s Bar moved into its more spacious new location. On Aug. 25, Atlanta’s best dive bar will be celebrating the one-year anniversary of its move with a night of local bands and DJs. Snowden, Psychic Hearts and Atlas Sound (Bradford Cox of Deerhunter) will bring the rock. KISS Atlanta party-starter Preston Craig will fill the floor with a DJ set. This anniversary party looks to be the best end-of-summer blowout in Atlanta, so be there.

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