The Dillinger Escape Plan begins recording a new album in July; El Grupo Nuevo de Omar Rodriguez Lopez and Madvillain post tracks; Sunny Day Real Estate is rumored to be reuniting; Steve Reich wins a Pulitzer. Keep reading in the roundup.
Femi Kuti
Ten Random Songs from the iPod of Online Editor Scott Morrow
Begrudgingly, online editor Scott Morrow has joined this decade with the purchase (not by him, mind you) of his first iPod.
What We’re Seeing Saturday: Doppler Shift, Bustle in Your Hedgerow
It would have been killer to see Femi Kuti & Positive Force on Saturday, but the Afrobeat star’s US tour has been postponed until he recovers from illness.
The cancellation, at least, gives us a chance to catch two other strong options: the heavy, beat-driven jazz-rock of Doppler Shift and the keyboard-fueled Led Zeppelin covers of Bustle in Your Hedgerow.
Weekly Music News Roundup
Amon Tobin makes up half of a new project called Two Fingers; Witch goes on tour with Earthless; Dan Deacon posts a preview of his new album; Converge and Supermachiner each has a new album for ’09; Kronos Quartet is giving away 50 pairs of tickets for its performance in France this month.
Read about these and 11 more news bits in our weekly roundup.
Femi Kuti: Day By Day
As the eldest son of Nigerian activist, Afrobeat originator and certified legend Fela Kuti, who passed away in 1997, Femi Kuti has certainly had some enormous figurative shoes to fill. Fortunately for us, he’s thus far done a bang- up job, and his latest, Day By Day from Mercer Street Records, is not only a worthy addition to the catalog, but is perhaps his finest and most focused to date.
Weekly Music News Roundup
Femi Kuti confirms US tour dates, Ennio Morricone will write music for Quentin Tarantino, and we have previews for new albums by Andrew Bird, Burnt by the Sun, William Elliot Whitmore, and Powersolo. Read on.
Lollapalooza Recap: Day 1
Despite a relatively tame lineup, the first day of this year’s Lollapalooza had some legitimate highlights — the heavy grooves of afrobeat star Femi Kuti, the gorgeous orchestration of The Polyphonic Spree, and the marvelous light show of Daft Punk.