Merge Records

Stream & pre-order The Extra Lens’ “Undercard” now!

The Extra Lens, the musical collaboration between John Darnielle (Mountain Goats) and Franklin Bruno (Nothing Painted Blue, the Human Hearts), will release their Merge debut, Undercard on October 19. You can now stream Undercard in its entirety and pre-order the album on CD and LP in the Merge store.

Undercard is the first new album from this distinguished partnership since 2002′s Martial Arts Weekend and is comprised of eleven original songs and a pretty ominous-sounding cover song, and will include copious song notes from John and Franklin. The artwork features an illustration by Ian Dingman and a vintage boxing poster feel inspired by the title, Undercard, which references the fights listed under the main event at a boxing match.

The Extra Lens have a few surprises in store for us this fall, so stay tuned! Download a free MP3 of  “Only Existing Footage,” and be sure to follow the Extra Lens on twitter!

Telekinesis celebrates fall tour with new EP & video!

Telekinesis presents the Parallel Seismic Conspiracies EP – available today from finer digital retailers, the Merge store and from the band in actual, physical format on their co-headline tour starting today in St. Louis with Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin. You can also pre-order the limited-edition CD version in the Merge store now!

The new release and tour are sure to get everyone all warmed up for Telekinesis’ 2011 full-length follow-up to the acclaimed debut Telekinesis! – the EP contains a full-band version of the first album’s “Calling All Doctors,” plus covers of Guided By Voices’ “Game of Pricks” and “The Drawback” (borrowed from the proto-Joy Division project Warsaw) and a dazzling new Michael Benjamin Lerner treat called “Dirty Thing” that just could be the summer hit you’ve been waiting for!

Watch the new and sprightly video for “Dirty Thing” now!

To complement the new Parallel Seismic Conspiracies EP (and maybe even to begin previewing material that will appear on the upcoming full-length), a new incarnation of the Telekinesis band will be on tour starting today and finishing up on October 19 in LA at the Music Box with Superchunk. Featuring Jason Narducy (Robert Pollard band, Verbow) on bass and Cody Votolato (Jaguar Love, The Blood Brothers) on guitar, the new line-up will be delivering energy and fun nightly.

Telekinesis on tour:
(with Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin unless noted)
Aug 31 St. Louis, MO Firebird
Sep 1 Urbana, IL Canopy Club
Sep 2 Chicago, IL Lincoln Hall
Sep 3 Detroit, MI Magic Stick
Sep 4 Toronto, ON El Mocambo
Sep 6 Montreal, QC Casa Del Popolo
Sep 7 Cambridge, MA TT The Bear’s
Sep 8 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
Sep 10 Washington, DC Black Cat
Sep 11 Philadelphia, PA The Barbary
Sep 12 Cleveland Heights, OH Grog Shop
Sep 13 Columbus, OH The Basement
Oct 13 Vancouver, BC Venue Nightclub    w/ Superchunk
Oct 14 Seattle, WA Showbox at the Market w/ Superchunk, Teenage Fanclub
Oct 15 Portland, OR Wonder Ballroom    w/ Superchunk, Teenage Fanclub
Oct 19 Los Angeles, CA The Music Box    w/ Superchunk

Arcade Fire present “The Wilderness Downtown”

Today, Arcade Fire launched “The Wilderness Downtown,” an interactive film featuring “We Used to Wait” from their new album, The Suburbs.

Taking its name from a lyric from the aforementioned song–“so when the lights cut out, I was lost, standing in the wilderness downtown”–“The Wilderness Downtown” exemplifies the Google “Chrome Experience” and HTML5 technology, cueing the opening of multiple browser windows, visually incorporating viewers’ childhood addresses (if they are available via Google Street View), allowing the viewers to write and share messages to their younger selves and more.

“The Wilderness Downtown,” an interactive film by Chris Milk featuring “We Used To Wait” from Arcade Fire’s new album The Suburbs can be experienced now at http://thewildernessdowntown.com/. Order The Suburbs on CD, dbl-LP, and digital download now in the Merge store.

Back in the physical world, Arcade Fire’s October 7 and 8 shows at Los Angeles’ Shrine Auditorium have sold out completely, with all of the approximately 12,000 tickets going  within hours of on sale. Popular demand has also necessitated the adding of a second show at the Greek Theater in Berkeley CA, where the band will now perform October 2 and 3.

ARCADE FIRE ON TOUR FALL 2010:
9/22  St. Paul, MN   Roy Wilkins Arena
9/23  Winnipeg, MB   MTS Centre
9/25  Saskatoon, SK   Credit Union Centre
9/26  Calgary, AB   Stampede Corral * SOLD OUT
9/28  Vancouver, BC   Pacific Coliseum  * SOLD OUT
9/29  Seattle, WA   Key Arena
9/30  Portland, OR   Memorial Coliseum
10/2  Berkeley, CA   Greek Theatre * SOLD OUT
10/3  Berkeley, CA   Greek Theatre
10/5  Big Sur, CA   Henry Miller Library * SOLD OUT
10/7  Los Angeles, CA   Shrine Auditorium   * SOLD OUT
10/8 Los Angeles, CA   Shrine Auditorium   * SOLD OUT
10/10  Mexico City (MX)   Palacio de los Deportes
10/12  Monterrey (MX)   Banamex Theater

The Clean announce US tour dates!

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

Radar Brothers & Teenage Fanclub tour celebration sale!

To celebrate the upcoming joint tour dates featuring Teenage Fanclub and Radar Brothers, we are having a sale! For a limited-time, get a bundle of Teenage Fanclub’s Shadows and Radar Brothers’ The Illustrated Garden on CD for only $21.98 with free domestic shipping!

While most bands are lucky to have one great songwriter, Teenage Fanclub are blessed with three, hence Shadows is overflowing with the kind of gorgeous, harmony-driven classics you’d expect to find on a greatest hits album.

The Illustrated Garden is the punchiest, most lyrically direct set of songs Radar Brothers’ has released to date. The songs are unmistakably Radar Brothers, but the Treichel/Hussey rhythm section often pushes them in unexpected directions.

Teenage Fanclub & Radar Brothers on tour:
9/24 Montreal, QC Le National
9/25 Boston, MA Royale
9/27 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
9/28 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
10/01 Philadelphia, PA Trocadero
10/02 Washington, DC 9:30 Club
10/03 Millvale, PA Mr. Small’s Theater
10/05 Chicago, IL Lincoln Hall
10/06 Chicago, IL Lincoln Hall
10/07 Minneapolis, MN First Avenue
10/11 Los Angeles, CA El Rey Theater
10/12 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore

Limited-edition Destroyer 12-inch “Archers on the Beach” to be released in November

On November 2, Destroyer will release the limited-edition 12-inch “Archer on the Beach” b/w “Grief Point.” This release is inspired by the music of Kranky recording artists Tim Hecker and Loscil and achieved through their full collaboration.

Destroyer mastermind Dan Bejar says, “The reason why this has to be seen as a collaboration, rather than strictly a Destroyer release, is that, for the first time, I’m not responsible for any of the music contained on this EP aside from the vocals, the general chord progression of ‘Archer on the Beach,’ and maybe a couple of the sound effects.”

“Archer on the Beach” is a meditation on the need to grapple with the 20th century in one’s own special way and with style, this time through singing quietly, through repetition, and through leaving lots of space between words, as well as finally learning to love crowds and nature.

“Grief Point” is the first recording Bejar made after deciding never to record again. It is a one-time exploration of the self-explanatory world, recorded in an office and on the street. Inspired by the writings of Michael Herr and the production design of Dean Tavoularis, the words occasionally obsess over the need to make certain things that don’t need to be made, while the music—written, played, and produced in its entirety by Loscil, aka Scott Morgan—tackles wholly separate issues. “Grief Point” was, at one point, the working title of a song called “Bay of Pigs.”

The artists’ intentions can best be illuminated by this fragment of email correspondence from Bejar to Hecker: “Shit, just give it that Michael Mann-meets-Thomas Mann sound that you do!”

The “Archer on the Beach” b/w “Grief Point” 12-inch will be limited to an edition of 1,000 copies that include a digital download coupon. Pre-order your copy now in the Merge store!

Teenage Fanclub add Radar Brothers to dates; announce 2nd NYC show

Teenage Fanclub’s long-awaited North American tour in support of Shadows will begin September 22 in Toronto! Radar Brothers will join Teenage Fanclub on several dates in support of their latest release The Illustrated Garden.

Tickets are going fast for Teenage Fanclub’s previously announced September 27 Bowery Ballroom show, so they have added a second show at the Bowery Ballroom on September 28 (tickets on sale 8/25 at noon)! Radar Brothers will join Teenage Fanclub on both NYC dates and more that are listed below.

Don’t miss your chance to see this very special tour!

Teenage Fanclub North American tour:
* = w/ Radar Brothers
9/22 Toronto, ON Horseshoe Tavern
9/23 Toronto, ON Horseshoe Tavern
9/24 Montreal, QC Le National*
9/25 Boston, MA Royale*
9/27 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom*
9/28 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom*
9/28 New York, NY Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
9/30 Brooklyn, NY Williamsburg Waterfront w/ Belle and Sebastian
10/01 Philadelphia, PA Trocadero*
10/02 Washington, DC 9:30 Club*
10/03 Millvale, PA Mr. Small’s Theater*
10/05 Chicago, IL Lincoln Hall*
10/06 Chicago, IL Lincoln Hall*
10/07 Minneapolis, MN First Avenue*
10/11 Los Angeles, CA El Rey Theater*
10/12 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore*
10/14 Seattle, WA Showbox w/ Superchunk & Telekinesis
10/15 Portland, OR Wonder Ballroom w/ Superchunk & Telekinesis
10/16 Vancouver, BC Biltmore Cabaret

Superchunk “On the Mouth” and “No Pocky for Kitty” reissues in stores today!

Newly remastered and reissued versions of On the Mouth and No Pocky for Kitty are available today on CD, LP and digital download at your favorite record store, digital provider and the Merge store.

Remastered by Jason Ward at Chicago Mastering Company from the original 1/2″ reels, both albums will be available for the first time on 180 gram vinyl (with download coupon), and on CD newly packaged in LP-style cardboard sleeves.

Order On the Mouth and No Pocky for Kitty on CD, LP or digital download in the Merge store, and don’t forget to pre-order the new Superchunk album, Majesty Shredding on CD or LP while you are there!

Superchunk will be on tour this fall beginning with their CD release show on Sept 16 at the Nasher Museum in Durham, NC. A new show in Montreal has just been added, too!

Superchunk on tour:
9/16 Durham, NC – The Nasher Museum
9/17  Washington, DC- 930 Club
9/18  New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom
9/19  Brooklyn, NY- Music Hall of Williamsburg
9/20  New York, NY – Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
9/21  Boston, MA- Royale
9/22  Philadelphia, PA- Trocadero
9/23 Montreal, QC- Le National
10/2 Las Vegas, NV – Matador 21
10/13 Vancouver, BC – Venue Nightclub
10/14 Seattle, WA – The Showbox
10/15 Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom
10/19 Los Angeles, CA – The Music Box at Fonda

Arcade Fire announce fall tour dates!

In the wake of The Suburbs’ #1 chart debut, Arcade Fire has confirmed another leg of dates stretching from Minnesota to Mexico.

The next installation of North American dates will begin September 22 at the Roy Wilkins Arena in St. Paul MN, swinging through western Canada, the pacific northwestern U.S., and California before concluding October 12 at Monterrey, Mexico’s Banamex Theater.

The September-October shows will follow a current run of dates including a recent two-night stand at New York’s Madison Square Garden, a headline set at Lollapalooza and an upcoming August 14 headline at Toronto’s Olympic Island. Following that and prior to the band’s return to North America, Arcade Fire will make a select number of UK and European appearances, including headline stands at the Reading and Leeds festivals in the UK.

Arcade Fire on tour:
8/14 Toronto, ON – Olympic Island
8/27 Leeds, UK – Leeds Festival
8/28 Reading, UK – Reading Festival
8/29 Saint Cloud, France – Rock En Seine
9/2 Bologna, Italy – I-Day Festival
9/22   St. Paul, MN   Roy Wilkins Arena
9/23   Winnipeg, MB   MTS Centre
9/25   Saskatoon, SK   Credit Union Centre
9/26   Calgary, AB   Stampede Corral
9/28   Vancouver, BC   Pacific Coliseum
9/29   Seattle, WA   Key Arena
9/30   Portland, OR   Memorial Coliseum
10/2   Berkeley, CA   Greek Theatre
10/5   Big Sur, CA   Henry Miller Library
10/7   Los Angeles, CA   Shrine Auditorium
10/8  Los Angeles, CA   Shrine Auditorium
10/10   Mexico City (MX)   Palacio de los Deportes
10/12   Monterrey (MX)   Banamex Theater

Arcade Fire on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart tonight!

Arcade Fire will appear on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart tonight. They’ll perform “Ready to Start” from their new album The Suburbs which is currently the # 1 record in the country!

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart airs on Comedy Central at 11 PM EDT / 10 PM CST. Check your local listings for channel information and set your DVRs.

The Suburbs is available on CD, dbl-LP and digital download (with special digital artwork) in the Merge store. And you should also check out this one-day special happening through twitter @earlybird!

On Tour

Arcade Fire [+]

September
02 Bologna Arena Parco Nord
10 Mexico City Palacio de los Deportes
22 St. Paul, MN Roy Wilkins Auditorium
23 Winnipeg, MB MTS Centre
25 Saskatoon Credit Union Centre
[see all]

Lou Barlow [+]

September
02 Cambridge, MA Middle East
03 Philadelphia, PA Johnny Brenda's
04 Hoboken, NJ Maxwell's

Richard Buckner [+]

September
07 Charlottesville, VA The Southern
08 Asheville, NC The Grey Eagle
09 Columbia, SC Columbia Museum of Art
10 Raleigh, NC Hopscotch Music Festival
11 Charlotte, NC Evening Muse
[see all]

Caribou [+]

September
14 Guelph, ON Ebar
15 Ottawa, ON Babylon
16 Montreal, QC Le National
17 Toronto, ON The Drake
17 Toronto, ON Phoenix Theatre
[see all]

The Clean [+]

September
28 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
29 Hoboken, NJ Maxwell's
30 Chicago, IL Bottom Lounge
October
02 Lawrence, KS Granada Theater - SCION Festival
04 San Francisco, CA The Independent
[see all]

The Clientele [+]

September
06 Seattle, WA Bumbershoot
07 Portland, OR Doug Fir
09 Oakland, CA New Parish
10 San Francisco, CA Independent
11 Los Angeles, CA Echoplex
[see all]

Fucked Up [+]

September
05 Monticello, NY All Tomorrow's Parties
09 Washington, DC Rock n' Roll Hotel
10 Raleigh, NC Hopscotch Festival
11 Atlanta, GA The Drunken Unicorn
12 Charlotte, NC Amos Southend
[see all]

Lambchop [+]

November
11 Berlin Admiralspalast - 20 Years of City Slang
22 Katowice Ars Cameralis Festival
24 Zagreb Kino SC
25 Munich Amerikahaus
27 Copenhagen DR Concert House
[see all]

Let's Wrestle [+]

September
04 Los Angeles, CA FYF Fest
05 Santa Barbara, CA Club Mercy Presents
06 San Francisco, CA Great American Music Hall
08 Seattle, WA Neumo's
09 Vancouver, BC Rickshaw Theatre
[see all]

The Love Language [+]

September
03 Atlanta, GA The Earl
03 Atlanta, GA Criminal Records
04 Charlotte, NC Visulite Theatre
09 Winston Salem, NC Earshot Records
09 Winston Salem, NC Krankies
[see all]

Conor Oberst [+]

September
28 Pioneertown, CA Pappy & Harriets
30 Santa Barbara, CA Soho in SB
October
01 Big Sur, CA Fernwood
02 San Francisco, CA Hardly Strictly Bluegrass

Polvo [+]

November
05 Baton Rouge, LA Spanish Moon
06 Houston, TX Fitzgerald's Downstairs
07 Austin, TX Fun Fun Fun Fest at Waterloo

Radar Bros. [+]

September
24 Montreal, QC Le National
25 Boston, MA Royale
27 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
28 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
October
01 Philadelphia, PA Trocadero Theatre
[see all]

The Rosebuds [+]

September
10 Raleigh, NC Hopscotch Festival

Shark Quest [+]

October
09 Carrboro, NC Carrboro ArtsCenter

She & Him [+]

September
05 Los Angeles, CA Paramount Studios
October
17 San Francisco, CA Treasure Island
22 Portland, OR Schnitzer Hall
23 Seattle, WA City Arts Music Festival - 5th Avenue Theatre
24 Vancouver, BC The Orpheum

Spoon [+]

September
11 Harrisburg, PA The Forum
12 Clark, NJ Oak Ridge Park
13 Brooklyn, NY Music Hall of Williamsburg
30 Los Angeles, CA Hollywood Palladium
October
01 San Diego, CA Soma
[see all]

Superchunk [+]

September
16 Durham, NC The Nasher Museum of Art
17 Washington 9:30 Club
18 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
19 Brooklyn, NY Music Hall of Williamsburg
21 Boston, MA Royale
[see all]

Teenage Fanclub [+]

September
22 Toronto, ON The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern
23 Toronto, ON The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern
24 Montreal, QC Le National
25 Boston, MA Royale
27 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
[see all]

Telekinesis [+]

September
02 Chicago, IL Lincoln Hall
03 Detroit, MI Magic Stick
04 Toronto, ON El Mocambo
06 Montreal, QC Casa Del Popolo
07 Cambridge, MA TT The Bear's
[see all]

Versus [+]

September
21 Boston, MA Royale
22 Philadelphia, PA Trocadero Theatre

Wye Oak [+]

September
02 Cambridge, MA Middle East
03 Philadelphia, PA Johnny Brenda's
04 Hoboken, NJ Maxwell's
October
04 Lawrence, KS Bottleneck
05 Columbia, MO The Blue Note
[see all]
see all tour dates

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