Here the band offers artwork by In Prism’s Delicious Design League and music on “licorice-colored vinyl” that “might smell like baseball cards,” to borrow their own description. Recorded in North Carolina and mixed by Mitch Easter, “Heavy Detour” is taken from Polvo’s upcoming album.

Stream “Heavy Detour”

Polvo formed in Chapel Hill, NC, in 1990–a place and period known for its fertile indie scene. The band released two full-length albums and two EPs on Merge Records, plus two full-length albums for Touch and Go before disbanding in 1997. Polvo, joined this time by drummer Brian Quast (Cherry Valence), reformed in 2008 and released the critically acclaimed In Prism the following year.

The “Heavy Detour b/w “Anchoress” limited-edition 7-inch is available now for preorder in the Merge store.

Polvo on tour:
Aug 03 Sondrio, Italy Arena Sonica Festival
Aug 05 Berlin, Germany Puschen Festival
Aug 06 Katowice, Poland Off Festival
Aug 08 Amsterdam, Netherlands Paradiso
Aug 09 Copenhagen, Denmark KB 18
Aug 10 Stockholm, Sweden Debaser

Don’t forget the Merge titles added to the long list of exclusive releases and other fun events happening at your local independent record stores tomorrow! To find a participating store in your area, visit RecordsStoreDay.com!

WILD FLAG – “Future Crimes” b/w “Glass Tambourine” 7-inch
The hotly anticipated debut release from the new musical partnership between Carrie Brownstein, Mary Timony, Janet Weiss, and Rebecca Cole will be released exclusively in 7-inch form on Record Store Day! Produced by Spoon’s Britt Daniel, these tracks have already become viral hits through widely circulated videos taken during the band’s recent tour. Maybe this 7-inch will answer the question posed by WILD FLAG: What do you get when you cross a hamburger with a hot dog? Listen to “Glass Tambourine” now at NPR Music!

Superchunk – Here’s Where the Strings Come In CD/LP reissue
Out of print for years, Here’s Where the Strings Come In has been remastered by Jason Ward at Chicago Mastering Company from the original 1/2” reels and will be available for the first time on 180-gram vinyl (with download coupon) and on CD newly packaged in LP-style cardboard sleeves. The heavy-duty vinyl jackets were reprinted by Stoughton Printing Co., the same plant that produced them for the original 1995 release. Both formats will also come with bonus downloads of The Clambakes Vol. 5, a live Superchunk recording from 2003, and several exclusive demos of songs that appear on the album.

Caribou – Swim Remixes 12-inch
Originally released as a digital-only companion to Swim, Caribou’s acclaimed 2010 release, the Swim Remixes double A-side 12-inch features “Leave House (Motor City Drum Ensemble Remix)” b/w “Jamelia (Gold Panda Remix),” as well as a code to download the entire 14-track release. Limited to 1,000 and packaged in a European-style black sleeve, this 12-inch is a must for DJs and Caribou fans alike!

Polvo – Celebrate the New Dark Age 12-inch, autographed by original line-up!
Originally released in 2008, this re-issue of Polvo’s guitar-twisting seven-song EP on limited-edition 180-gram vinyl is a Merge hallmark. It comes complete with great sleeve design by Independent Project Press and a free download coupon. A limited number of this 12-inch EP have been autographed by the original 1994 Polvo line-up exclusively for Record Store Day!

Superchunk / Coliseum – “Horror Business” b/w “Bullet” split 7-inch
Merge Records and Temporary Residence Limited have partnered to co-release “Horror Business” b/w “Bullet,” a limited-edition 7-inch of Misfits covers by Superchunk and Coliseum for Record Store Day. Limited to 1,500 copies and available exclusively in record stores, the 7-inch cover was designed by Coliseum singer/guitarist Ryan Patterson, with a nod to the artwork from the Misfits’ Three Hits From Hell single. The 7-inch will be issued on three different colors of vinyl (500 copies of each): yellow w/ black splatter, magenta w/ black splatter, and standard black.

WILD FLAG – “Future Crimes” b/w “Glass Tambourine” 7-inch
The hotly anticipated debut release from the new musical partnership between Carrie Brownstein, Mary Timony, Janet Weiss and Rebecca Cole will be released exclusively in 7-inch form on Record Store Day! Produced by Spoon’s Britt Daniel, these tracks have already become viral hits through widely circulated videos taken during the band’s recent tour dates. Maybe this 7-inch will answer the question posed by WILD FLAG: What do you get when you cross a hamburger with a hot dog?

Listen to “Glass Tambourine” now at NPR Music!

Superchunk – Here’s Where the Strings Come In CD/LP reissue
Out of print for years, Here’s Where the Strings Come In has been remastered by Jason Ward at Chicago Mastering Company from the original 1/2″ reels, and will be available for the first time on 180 gram vinyl (with download coupon), and on CD newly packaged in LP-style cardboard sleeves. The heavy-duty vinyl jackets were re-printed at the original printing plant, Stoughton Printing Co, from the 1995 release. Both formats will also come with a download of exclusive bonus materials from the Superchunk vaults.

Caribou - Swim (Remixes) 12-inch
Originally released as a digital-only companion to Caribou’s acclaimed 2010 release Swim, the Swim (Remixes) double A-side 12-inch features “Leave House (Motor City Drum Ensemble Remix)” b/w “Jamelia (Gold Panda Remix)” as well as a code to download the entire 14-track release. Limited to 1000 and packaged in a European-style black sleeve, this 12-inch is a must for DJs and Caribou fans alike!

Polvo – Celebrate the New Dark Age 12-inch – Autographed by original line-up!
Originally released in 2008, this re-issue of Polvo’s guitar-twisting seven-song EP on limited-edition 180-gram vinyl is a Merge hallmark. Complete with great sleeve design by Independent Project Press, and a free download coupon. Exclusively for Record Store Day, a limited number of this vinyl EP have been autographed by the original 1994 Polvo line-up!

Superchunk / Coliseum – “Horror Business” b/w “Bullet” split 7-inch
Merge Records and Temporary Residence Limited have partnered to co-release “Horror Business” b/w “Bullet,” a limited-edition 7-inch of Misfits covers from Superchunk and Coliseum for April 16 – Record Store Day. Limited to 1,500 copies and available exclusively in record stores, the 7-inch cover was designed by Coliseum singer/guitarist Ryan Patterson, with a nod to the artwork from the Misfits’ Three Hits From Hell single. The 7-inch will be issued on three different colors of vinyl: Yellow w/ Black Splatter; Magenta w/ Black Splatter; and standard Black (500 copies of each).

Through the tinted windows of the bus, I could imagine that I was staring out through snow fields instead of the infinite desert.

I was ill-prepared to endure the August heat, which was upwards of 115 degrees. I tried to rest and began to visualize walking among the ruins while pane after pane of beige emptiness passed the window. Suddenly, an interruption; a sign for the lone crossroads between Bagdad and Amman. And just as quickly, it was behind me and I was back to the stillness.

Click to read the rest of Dave’s short story at Impose.

Directed by Jon Leone

Buy In Prism at the Merge store.

Polvo will finish up their fall tour at the Cat’s Cradle in Carrboro, NC on Saturday.

Get In Prism on CD, double LP or digital download now in the Merge store.

The Chapel Hill, NC band Polvo made a name for itself in the 1990s with off-kilter rhythms, dissonant guitars and cryptic wordplay. The band broke up in 1998, but is back with its first new studio album in 12 years. It’s called In Prism.

Order Polvo’s new album, In Prism, on limited edition double-LP, CD and digital download in the Merge store.

Tickets are on sale now. Visit the All Tomorrow’s Parties website for full line-up and travel information. Polvo’s new record, In Prism, is available on limited edition double-LP, CD and digital download now in the Merge store!

The Clean released a new MP3 from Mister Pop today exclusively at RCRD LBL. Also, Pop Tarts Suck Toasted chatted with Hamish about the challenges and rewards of being a band on two continents. Pre-order The Clean’s Mister Pop on CD in the Merge store for a chance to win a SCORE! box set.

Pre-order Polvo, The Clean AND Our Noise by September 8 for THREE chances to win the SCORE! box set!

Visit the Merge store to pre-order new albums from Polvo and The Clean as well as Our Noise: The Story of Merge Records for your chance to win!

If you have already pre-ordered any of our September releases, you will automatically be entered. And, yes, if you pre-order more than one September release (Polvo, The Clean, Our Noise), you get more than one chance to win!

photo by Ashley Worley

From Wired.com:

Not that Brylawski, whose brainy band vaporized conventional musical structure with hypnotic results on efforts like its 1992 debut Cor-Crane Secret and 1996’s Exploded Drawing before disbanding, rejects critical or commercial vernacular. He just thinks math rock is too narrow to describe his band’s output.

“I understand the need to classify bands,” he said, “but if you have to put us in a box, I guess I prefer ‘psychedelic.’”

Read the full interview with Brylawski here.

The new Polvo album, In Prism, will be released on September 8 on CD, DBL-LP, and digital download. Pre-order your copy now in the Merge store for a chance to win a SCORE! subscription box set.

The Clean – Mister Pop
Mister Pop sees The Clean continue the great pop pastiche they began in 1978. Circus ragas (“Moonjumper”), gorgeously hazy sunset anthems (“In the Dreamlife You Need a Rubber Soul”), and the sometimes-loose Dada approach to wordsmithery continue right alongside “proper” lyrical forays, and a few Autobahn-referential instrumental moments to boot (“Tensile”). Robert Scott’s love of pastoral UK folk has brought some added weight into the overall Clean equation, as does David Kilgour’s Eastern and African guitar jones, though all this has always fit in with—and still constitutes—the total basis of the Clean sound journey.

Polvo – In Prism
Polvo formed in 1990 in Chapel Hill, NC. Their lineup consisted of vocalists/guitarists Ash Bowie and Dave Brylawski, bassist Steve Popson, and drummer Eddie Watkins.  The band released 2 full-length albums and 2 EPs on Merge Records, and 2 full-length albums for Touch and Go before disbanding in 1997. Polvo, joined by drummer Brian Quast (Cherry Valence), reformed in 2008 when asked to perform at ATP by Explosions in the Sky. Several festival shows followed, and new songs emerged. The Philadelphia Weekly said in a recent preview, “In the 1990s, no one used more hard angles, sharp turns and squirrelly tunings than the dos guitarra barrage of Ash Bowie and Dave Brylawski.”

“the noise-rockers are still in fine, angular, all-over-the-map form.” ~Stereogum.com

Brian & Shannon Vetter

Polvo will hit the road in June and July including XX Merge, and the Seaport Music Festival with Obits on July 31st. More tour dates to come this fall!

Polvo formed in 1990 in Chapel Hill, NC. Their lineup consisted of vocalists/guitarists Ash Bowie and Dave Brylawski, bassist Steve Popson, and drummer Eddie Watkins.  The band released 2 full-length albums and 2 EPs on Merge Records, and 2 full-length albums for Touch and Go before disbanding in 1997. Polvo, joined by drummer Brian Quast (Cherry Valence), reformed in 2008 when asked to perform at ATP by Explosions in the Sky. Several festival shows followed, and new songs emerged.

The band has tour dates planned in June and July including XX Merge, and the Seaport Music Festival with Obits on July 31st. More tour dates to come this fall!

Download “Beggar’s Bowl” now!

In Prism track listing:
1. Right the Relation
2. D.C. Trails
3. Beggar’s Bowl
4. City Birds
5. Lucia
6. Dream residue/Work
7. The Pedlar
8. A Link in the Chain

Original members, Ash Bowie (singer/guitarist), Dave Brylawski (guitar), Steve Popson (bass) will all be there minus drummer Eddie Watkins. Brian Quast formerly of the Cherry Valence will act as drummer.

More information here!

Also, Versus played a surprise show for Matt Daseman’s (drummer for True Love Always & Flin/Flon) 40th Birthday at The Union Hall in Brooklyn last weekend! The lucky crowd were all smiles and partying like it was 1997!