Archive for the ‘news’ Category

Getty played, Lost Weekend cancelled

Thursday, March 4th, 2010

lincoln-detail-by-kathryn-yu

Unless this is the only music site you ever read (hey, you could do worse) you’ll have heard that Dirty Projectors played their two special Getty Address shows at the Lincoln Center, NY and the Disney Concert Hall, LA. There’s only one YouTube clip so far, of two songs from the Disney encore - perhaps a blessing, given the quality of most YouTube content. There are, however, links to reviews, features and photos on the new UC ‘Past Shows‘ page. Take a scroll down this virtual Memory Lane for further link goodness, with more to be added as we go along.

The past fortnight also saw the Bang On A Can All-Stars‘ performance of three new and intriguingly named DL compositions. WQXR streamed it live but aren’t able to release the recording at present. As Joey from Portland says in the comments, “Hopefully someday [we] will get to hear the great sounds of Matt Damon, Breakfast At J&M, and Instructional Video“.

Meanwhile, the group are no doubt looking forward to sampling vegemite sandwiches and stocking up on Paul Hogan Show videos as the tour rolls into Australia this weekend. Great shame about the Lost Weekend, though.

Dirty Projectors and Solange, in person

Tuesday, February 16th, 2010

dave-longstreth-and-solange

Last Saturday night, Solange Knowles joined Dirty Projectors for a run through Stillness Is The Move at the launch party for Opening Ceremony’s new boutique at the Ace Hotel, NYC.  DPs were playing as the house band, Solange was DJ.  Who could have possibly foreseen what transpired?

Go to the Opening Ceremony site for YouTube clips, including a DPs cover of Tell Me by Groove Theory.

A photo slideshow and write-up are here.  Look out for Michael Stipe’s moustache and Walker’s Crisps described as ‘British Walker Potato Chips’.

Thanks to Mike in San Francisco for being first with this news.  The photo above is by Steve Eichner.

Getty Address revisited

Tuesday, February 2nd, 2010

Getty cover

Pitchfork yesterday broke the news that Dirty Projectors will play their 2005 album, The Getty Address, in full, at two special shows this month.  They’ll be assisted in both performances by NY chamber orchestra Alarm Will Sound.  There’s another minimalist official website, too, featuring Dave’s letter to Don Henley.  More details at Pitchfork and Brooklyn Vegan.

If that puts you in the mood for some more Getty era DPs music, WNYC are still streaming a show that Dave and cohorts recorded nearly five years ago for the Spinning On Air programme.  It’s a real treat, somewhere around an hour long with a bit of chat but mostly just astonishing music. Thanks to Murray Levy and other readers for pointing this out.

WNYC - Spinning On Air: Dirty Projectors (April 08, 2005)

Ascending 7″ and free download, official website

Monday, January 11th, 2010

ascending_melody_7

Ascending Melody and Emblem Of The World, formerly extra tracks on the shelved Temecula Sunrise EP, and hitherto unavailable except on the internet, are released today as a free download and 7″ single.  What’s more, this news comes via the new, official Dirty Projectors website, at dirtyprojectors.net Go see, but unexpect the expected.  There’s a brief explanation of the release on the band’s myspace page, too.

Happy Questmas (Tour Isn’t Over)

Friday, November 27th, 2009

dirty-projectors-with-the-roots

Dirty Projectors rounded off their 2009 US tour last Sunday at New York’s Bowery Ballroom. They were joined by The Roots for two songs then, for the encore, by David Byrne. Details and plenty pics at Brooklyn Vegan. The following Wednesday saw a return to the Jimmy Fallon Show for Amber and Hayley, joining house band The Roots in backing up Mos Def and Talib Kweli. If past experience is anything to go by, the YouTube clip of this appearance won’t be around for very long.

Further live shows are scheduled in 2010 including a very special one in Los Angeles with the LA Symphony Orchestra, followed by the group’s first ever dates in New Zealand and Australia. Before that, there are three shows at the end of this year in Brazil. Details on the Tour Dates page.

The UK’s Uncut magazine has placed Bitte Orca at #3 in its end of year Top 50, just behind Animal Collective and Super Furry Animals. The magazine also carries a feature on the Brooklyn scene (described as a “mutual support network”), with a lead quote from D-Lo and short interviews with him and assorted Grizzlies and Collectivists. Elsewhere in the magazine are some effusive endorsements of Bitte Orca from other musicians - Rachel Unthank (”Every time I put it on it sets my pulse racing. It’s just so bold and strident and fearless.”), Aaron Dessner of The National (”Dave Longstreth is the guitar god of our generation. Bitte Orca is his first masterpiece.”) and Hayden Thorpe of Wild Beasts (”It may seem like an inside job, we being labelmates and all, but truthfully, even if it were released by venereal disease, I’d have loved Bitte Orca all the same.”).

Beyonce’s sis covers Stillness Is The Move

Thursday, November 12th, 2009

solange_knowles

Solange Knowles has recorded a cover of Stillness Is The Move.  Full story and mp3 at Stereogum.

Dirty Projectors in session on Sirius XMU

Thursday, November 5th, 2009

dirty-projectors-on-sirius-xmu

A quick heads up - Dirty Projectors have recorded a 30 minute session for Sirius XMU, a North American indie rock radio station.

The show is broadcast today at 4:00 pm ET, then again on Sunday at 12:00 pm ET.  The No Intention performance is already on YouTube.

Back in the day (2006)

Tuesday, October 13th, 2009

dirty_projectors_at_kvrx_2006

Kids, eh?  The earliest footage of Dirty Projectors on YouTube is a 2006 performance from SXSW.  It’s just a couple of minutes of Not Having Found, but astonishing and thrilling nonetheless.  The same lineup recorded a session for Austin’s KVRX Radio on 17 March 2006 and two of the songs - Not Having Found and Fucked For Life - are available from KVRX as mp3 downloads. There are pictures too, including one of guitarist Spencer Kingman eating an onion as if it were an apple.  In other words, this is another essential addition to the Dirty Projectors canon.

Back in 2009, the Temecula Sunrise EP looks like it could go either way.  Manchester’s Piccadilly Records shows it as a very specific 400-copies-only 12″ single coming out on Monday, whereas it seems to have disappeared from the Domino release schedule altogether.  Over on Pitchfork, Bitte Orca was voted the 56th best album of the decade in their Top 200 albums of the 2000s feature.  Cue a retread of the “This list is sooo WRONG!” / “Come on, it’s only a poll” debate.  Hey, it is only a poll.

Dirty Projectors on the Jimmy Fallon show

Tuesday, September 29th, 2009

dirty-projectors-fallon

Dirty Projectors debuted a new song on yesterday’s Late Night With Jimmy Fallon show, When The World Comes To An End.  If you’ve seen them on tour recently, you might have heard it already.  The tv clip is already on YouTube, as are performances of the song from Berlin and Amsterdam.  There’s even backstage rehearsal footage on Twitvid.

The Temecula Sunrise EP release date has gone back to 19 October, so there’s a bit longer to wait to hear those other two unreleased songs, Ascending Melody and Emblem Of The World.  If that news puts you in the mood for a sad song, well, you’re in luck.  Fader has a clip of Angel duetting with Phosphorescent, aka Matthew Houck, on his version of It’s Not Supposed To Be That Way.  The song is from the 2009 Phosphorescent album, To Willie, a collection of Willie Nelson covers, out now on Dead Oceans.

Transcribed lyrics for these three new DPs songs, but not the Willie Nelson one, are on the Useful Chamber lyrics page.

Temecula Sunrise ep - more details

Tuesday, September 8th, 2009

dirty-projectors-temecula-sunrise-ep

Here’s a preview of the cover of the Temecula Sunrise/Cannibal Resource EP - the cd promo, anyway.  The two lead tracks are the same as the versions on Bitte Orca.  The new songs are Ascending Melody and Emblem Of The World.