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Spoon to take part in Tucson benefit album & appear at Austin music festival

October 13, 2011 – 2:31 pm

Spoon will be contributing a song to the forthcoming benefit compilation Luz de Vida: A Compilation to Benefit the Victims of the Tucson Tragedy, which will be released on Fort Lowell Records on October 18. The other musicians on the album either hail from Tucson or have ties to the city and include Calexico, John Vanderslice, Robyn Hitchcock, and Neko Case, among many others.

All proceeds from the sale of Luz de Vida will go to the Tucson Together Fund, the only officially sanctioned fund established to assist victims, families, and witnesses of the January 8 shooting tragedy that occurred there. Read more about this worthwhile effort at musicagainstviolence.org.

In other Spoon-related news, the band has announced that it will be performing at Fun Fun Fun Fest on Saturday, November 5, at Auditorium Shores in Austin, TX. Don’t miss this rare opportunity to catch Spoon live in concert. Full-festival and single-day tickets are available here.

Pick up Spoon’s most recent full-length, Transference, or any of their previous releases in the Merge store today.

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Orange County Social Club celebrates 10 years

October 7, 2011 – 10:00 am

This month marks the 10-year anniversary of Orange County Social Club, a neighborhood bar in Carrboro, North Carolina, founded by our dear friend and former Merge-intern-turned-employee Tricia Mesigian.

OCSC marks its first decade with a week-long celebration that begins this Sunday, October 9, at 4 p.m. in the bar’s parking lot. There will be free music by several local bands and food for purchase from Neal’s Deli, the proceeds from which will benefit MusiCares.

Then Monday through Thursday from 6–8 p.m., OCSC will host indoor semi-acoustic shows, with an additional solo set at 9 p.m. on Tuesday by Mac McCaughan. On Thursday evening, Shark Quest, who put out three lovely albums on Merge, will play an instrumental set. While all of these evening shows are free, donations will be collected and put towards a scholarship fund that Tricia has established with the Town of Carrboro to help send local aspiring entrepreneurs to a small-business training course.

And as if all that weren’t enough, there will be two shows at the Cat’s Cradle, both starting at 8 p.m., to cap off the week’s festivities. The show on Friday, October 14, includes an appearance by The Ghost of Rock, which features members of Pipe. On Saturday the 15th, Crooked Fingers will play some songs off of their soon-to-be-released album, Breaks in the Armor. Saturday also sees the return of Seven Brides for the Meatwagon, a covers supergroup that includes Jim Wilbur and Jon Wurster (on guitar!) of Superchunk. Jon reveals, “We will deliver unto you the best and worst of the ’90s, the 2000s, and the OCSC jukebox. We haven’t played in ten years, so cut us some slack.”

Tickets for Friday and Saturday are on sale now at Cat’s Cradle, OCSC, CD Alley, and Schoolkids Records. Proceeds from the Cradle shows will also go to MusiCares. Visit and “like” OCSC on Facebook for full details and updates on next week’s events.

Congratulations, Trish, on your much-deserved success!

Also posted in Crooked Fingers, News, Portastatic, Superchunk | Comments (0)

Mac McCaughan scores films by Maya Deren for the Westobou Festival in Augusta, GA

September 28, 2011 – 11:46 am

Mac McCaughan of Superchunk and Portastatic has composed original scores for four films by noted experimental filmmaker Maya Deren, and he will perform them live on Thursday, September 29, at the world premiere of Transfigured Time: Music for the Films of Maya Deren, which opens the Westobou Festival in Augusta, Georgia.

Maya Deren (1917–1961) is often referred to as “the mother of the American underground cinema.” Her films are known for their startling and surrealistic imagery in which time and space are altered to create a world somewhere between dreams and reality. In 1946, Ms. Deren became the first filmmaker to receive a Guggenheim Foundation Fellowship, and later that year she was the recipient of the Cannes Film Festival Grand Prix Internationale. From photographer Cindy Sherman to artist Matthew Barney to filmmaker David Lynch, Maya Deren’s profound influence as a filmmaker and theorist resonates to this very day.

McCaughan’s compositional accomplishments include original scores for Who Loves the Sun and Looking for Leonard. His live scores for silent films include the Seattle International Film Festival’s presentation of Tod Browning’s The Unknown and Teinosuke Kinugasa’s A Page of Madness with Superchunk at the San Francisco Film Festival.

The evening will begin at 6 p.m. with a social hour in the lovely gardens of Sacred Heart Cultural Center. DJs will set the evening’s tone, and unique food and beverages will be available from The Bee’s Knees. The premiere of Transfigured Time: Music for the Films of Maya Deren will begin at sunset in the architectural splendor of Sacred Heart Cultural Center with McCaughan leading a small ensemble.

A co-production of Semi-Precious Productions and Sacred Heart Cultural Center, Transfigured Time will build upon the success of their presentation of 13 Most Beautiful: Songs for Andy Warhol’s Screen Tests at the 2010 Westobou Festival.

For tickets and more information, visit www.westoboufestival.com.

Also posted in News, Portastatic, Superchunk | Comments (1)

Missy Thangs of The Love Language to exhibit artwork

September 27, 2011 – 11:33 am

Minus Sound Research, an artist collective comprised of local North Carolina musicians/artists, will hold an art exhibition at Motorco Music Hall in Durham, NC, from October 7 through December 3. Among the featured artists is Missy Thangs of The Love Language. Past contributors to Minus Sound Research include Laura Ballance and Mac McCaughan, whose work can be seen in the MSR5 book.

The opening reception is free to the public and will take place at Motorco on Friday, October 7, from 6–9pm. Following the reception will be a show with local bands Organos, Free Electric State, and Merge favorites Pipe. Admission is $6.

See the poster below for full details or visit the Minus Sound Research website.

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Eleanor Friedberger on WNYC, playing at Barnes & Noble

September 20, 2011 – 5:12 pm

Eleanor Friedberger has a few New York events this week in advance of her tour with Wild Flag in October!

On September 21, she stopped by WNYC’s Soundcheck for a live in-studio performance and interview. You can now listen to the archived session online.

And on Thursday, September 22, Eleanor will join author Christopher Bollen at the Union Square Barnes & Noble for a special performance at 7pm.

Eleanor will also be on Sirius XMU this weekend for a session from the NYC studios. Replays of the session air Thursday 9/22 at 4pm Eastern, Friday 9/23 at 9pm Eastern, and Sunday 9/25 at Noon Eastern.

Last Summer is in stores now!

Also posted in Eleanor Friedberger, radio | Comments (0)

Arcade Fire to play in charity basketball game at POP Montreal

September 1, 2011 – 4:57 pm

On Saturday, September 24, several members of Arcade Fire will participate in POP Montreal’s first annual POP vs JOCK Charity Basketball Game. Brothers Win and Will Butler will show off their prowess on the basketball court, and Régine Chassagne will provide musical accompaniment on organ during the game. Richard Reed Parry will also premiere his bicycle symphony titled “DRONES/Revelations” during the halftime show. All proceeds from this event will benefit DJ Sports Club, a non-profit in Montreal that offers programs in sports and education to youth between 7 and 17 years of age. Tickets and more information can be found here.

Although their POP Montreal appearance at Metropolis is sold out, the band will be playing a free hometown show on September 22 at Place des Festivals in Quartier des Spectacles.

The deluxe edition of Arcade Fire‘s Grammy-winning album The Suburbs is available now on CD+DVD and digital download from the Merge store and your favorite retail outlets.

Also posted in Arcade Fire, News | Comments (1)

A guide to Merge happenings at Raleigh’s Hopscotch Festival

September 1, 2011 – 9:36 am

The 2nd annual Hopscotch Music Festival will take place September 8-10, 2011, in Raleigh, NC. Mark your calendars so you don’t miss out on these performances (updated with an appearance by Merge’s newest band, Hospitality!) :

Thursday, Sep. 8 @ 11 pm:
The Love Language – The Lincoln Theatre

Friday, Sep. 9 @ 12:30 am (Saturday morning):
Hospitality – The Union

Saturday, Sep. 10 @ 6:45 pm:
Superchunk – City Plaza w/ The Flaming Lips and Dreamers of the Ghetto [tickets]

Saturday, Sep. 10 @ 12:30 am (Sunday morning):
Times New Viking – The Union

Saturday, Sep. 10 @ 12:30 am (Sunday morning):
KORT (Kurt Wagner of Lambchop and Cortney Tidwell) – Kings Barcade

In addition, there will be a few FREE Merge-related daytime activities:

Friday, Sep. 9, 2-4 pm: Foundation will host a Wild Flag listening party. Come by for great music, drink specials, and door prizes.

Friday, Sep. 9, 3-5 pm: Stuart McLamb of The Love Language will participate in an artist-and-author discussion panel called “Simple Words: The Power of Narrative Songs” at the Raleigh City Museum. Seating is limited and on a first-come, first-served basis.

Saturday, Sep. 10, 11 am-5:30 pm: Hopscotch presents The Rosebuds & Friends, a block party outside the Lincoln Theatre. The seven-band lineup concludes with a performance by The Rosebuds at 4 pm. Food will be provided by Ashley Christensen and AC Restaurants, the proceeds from which will benefit the Frankie Lemmon Foundation.

And finally, SHOPscotch, a temporary pop-up store, will be open in Raleigh’s historic City Market every day during Hopscotch and on Sunday the 11th. This is the place to get Merge releases as well as records, t-shirts, and other merchandise from some of the festival’s participating bands. Business hours and more details can be found here.

Also posted in Lambchop, News, rosebuds, Superchunk, the love language, the rosebuds, Times New Viking, Wild Flag | Comments (0)

Kurt Wagner debuts new art collection in Nashville

August 30, 2011 – 4:45 pm

Kurt Wagner of Lambchop will debut a collection of his work at Zeitgeist Gallery in Nashville, Tennessee, on Thursday, September 1. Kurt will perform at the opening reception of  “Beautillion Millitaire 2000, LBJ, Portraits and Commissions” from 6-8pm that evening, and the exhibit will run through October 22. Zeitgeist Gallery is located at 1819 21st Avenue South (in Hillsboro Village), Nashville, TN. You can read more about Kurt’s new collection, and that of Wayne White, at Zeitgeist-art.com.

Kurt Wagner holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in fine art from the Memphis Academy of Arts and Montana State University, respectively.

Visit the Merge Store for all your Lambchop needs.

Also posted in Lambchop, News | Comments (0)

Arcade Fire’s Hyde Park performance streaming live today!

June 30, 2011 – 2:49 pm

Arcade Fire take the stage at London’s Hyde Park at 8:45PM BST tonight (that’s 3:45PM Eastern Daylight Time), Thursday June 30. You can stream their entire set live at this link!

The Suburbs Deluxe will be in stores on August 2 and will include two new Arcade Fire songs. Visit iTunes to purchase both new Arcade Fire songs via digital download, or pre-order The Suburbs Deluxe Edition on CD + DVD in the Merge store to receive a download code for both songs.

The expanded CD version of The Suburbs sees the original album augmented by a longer version of the track “Wasted Hours (A Life That We Can Live),” as well as the previously unreleased “Culture War” and “Speaking in Tongues,” the latter of which features David Byrne on additional vocals. Highlights of the DVD portion include the complete half-hour short film Scenes From The Suburbs, directed by Spike Jonze; the companion documentary Behind The Scenes From The Suburbs; and the music video for the track “The Suburbs.” The package is rounded out by an exclusive booklet featuring lyrics and 80 pages of photos taken during the Scenes From The Suburbs film shoot.

Also posted in Arcade Fire, News | Comments (1)

Superchunk’s KEXP session archived!

October 15, 2010 – 4:25 pm

Superchunk played a live set on KEXP while in Seattle for the Teenage Fanclub / Telekinesis mega-show at the Showbox on Thursday! Listen to the archive at KEXP.org.

North Carolina’s Superchunk was high on the list when it came to great indie-rock of the ‘90s (a time when that term actually made sense) and they haven’t lost a step with their 2010 LP of catchy, buzzing, riff-heavy pop “Majesty Shredding.” They play tracks from the new record and some classic singles live at KEXP. – W. Myers

Set List:
Cool
Digging for Something
Rosemarie
Cast Iron

Tour Dates:
10-15 Portland, OR Wonder Ballroom
10-17 San Francisco, CA Treasure Island
10-19 Los Angeles, CA The Music Box at Fonda
12-09 Toronto, ON Sound Academy

And check out their in-store performances in Portland, San Francisco, and LA!

Also posted in radio, Superchunk, Tour | Comments (0)

The Clean announce US tour dates!

August 25, 2010 – 4:17 pm

The Clean will return to the US in September to play some shows! David, Hamish & Robert will kick off their tour at Maxwell’s in Hoboken and then head west giving lucky fans an all-too-rare chance to see them play live!

The Clean’s latest release Mister Pop is available along with other great selections from their catalog in the Merge store.

The Clean on tour:
Sep 29 Hoboken, NJ Maxwell’s
Sep 30 Chicago, IL Bottom Lounge
Oct 04 San Francisco, CA The Independent
Oct 05 Portland, OR Holocene

Also posted in News, The Clean | Comments (2)

Arcade Fire live stream the MSG show

July 20, 2010 – 5:58 pm
Also posted in Arcade Fire, videos | Comments (0)