Video: 'At The Indie Disco' - The Divine Comedy

This man once wrote Going Downhill Fast. Shame. Shame. Shame.

Interpol - 'Lights'

The return of Interpol then, almost a decade after their only truly visceral record. Here's hoping.

Stream: 'Together' The New Pornographers

When I finally wean myself off John Grant's wonderful Queen of Denmark (sample lyric: "I wanted to change the world, but I could not even change my underwear"), Together by The New Pornographers awaits. Together features the talents of AC Newman and Neko Case and guest turns by Will Sheff (Okkervil River), St. Vincent and Beirut's Zach Condon.
Stream: Together

Stream: 'Your Future Our Clutter' - The Fall

28 studio albums. 28 fucking albums. The Fall are back but, in truth, they've never really been away. They're playing Tripod this Thursday (26th) and tickets are very much still available here. Check out the footage below of Mark E Smith reading the classified footie results on BBC a few years back. Sample quote: "Tottenham Hotspur Postponed West Ham United 1h"
Stream: Your Future Our Clutter (via NPR)

Play it again Lenny

Having sold out his original show in something ridiculous like six minutes, it's just been announced that Leonard Cohen will play a second show on August 1st. Tickets on sale here now but probably not for long.

John Grant - 'Queen of Denmark'

Given that their most recent record stilled the pulses they'd set racing with The Trials of Van Occupanther, it's somewhat ironic that Midlake have given a leg up to John Grant on his debut solo effort. There are Midlake-esque flourishes all over this wonderful record and yet everything it's all done in such a perfectly understated way. But regardless of who's backing him here, Grant has created one of the most prefectly formed collection of songs of 2010. It's not as if he's come from nowhere - Grant once fronted The Czars with whom he released several albums before they went their separate ways in the face of public indifference. But with Queen of Denmark he's crafted something as compelling as, say, For Emma, Forever Ago. Stunning music.
MySpace
TC and Honeybear - John Grant

'Jacqueline Susann' - Pernice Brothers

Goodbye, Killer is the soon to be released sixth album by Pernice Brothers. To me they've been trying - and failing - to match the consistent highs of their 1998 debut Overcome By Happiness in the intervening 12 years. Each of their subsequent 4 albums have featured an archetypal moment of Joe Pernice pop greatness (see videos below) but rarely have they extended themselves beyond such moments of thrilling immediacy. They lost me after Yours, Mine and Ours, a record which features the vividly bitter Number Two; "So take this, my back-stabbing pay back number, This is all mine, Cause you were my life-sucking power monger, Even still you were mine." Think Okkervil River's Love to a Monster on downers. Here's to holding grudges and a sample from Goodbye, Killer then. The album is released on June 15th.
Jacqueline Susann - Pernice Brothers

'At The Indie Disco' - The Divine Comedy

Neil Hannon has developed a neat line in releasing depressingly underwhelming singles in advance of albums in recent years. This has not changed in advance of Bang Goes the Knighthood. Sure, it's only pop music but when it's this teeth-gratingly trite, when all the faux Joby Talbot strings in the world can't disguise the mundanity of a 3'16" exercise in indie wallpaper futility, why bother?
At The Indie Disco - The Divine Comedy

Stream: 'High Violet' - The National

Awash with expectation, the time for The National to reveal their hand is nigh. Due for release on May 11th, High Violet has been kept strictly under wraps with the exception of Bloodbuzz Ohio and Afraid of Everyone. To date The National have existed, to a large extent, on the periphery but with the deliberate drip feed of tracks from Violet and a stunning rendition of the album's opener Terrible Love on the Jimmy Fallon show a month ago, there's an increasing momentum behind the band's progress from everyone's favourite other band to the band du jour. Initial reaction i.e. track 1, is that their studio version of Terrible Love pales in comparison to the incendiary version on Fallon. But this is The National and they do getting under your skin records better than anyone.
Stream: High Violet (via NY Times)

The Scaffolder Falls

Yet another Cathal Coughlan/Johnny Gogan collaboration this. The good news is that Mr. Coughlan - still Ireland's finest singer/songwriter - will return with a new album sometime in July entitled Rancho Tetrahedron. Looks like his old label Kitchenware will be releasing the record. Meanwhile, unlikely as it may seem, there's a Cathal Coughlan page on Facebook.
Coughlan has also collaborated with the excessively jaunty Dave Couse on the latter's new album. The pair sing together on Couse's new album Alone Walk.

The Scaffolder Falls from Sleeping Warrior on Vimeo.

Video: 'Drunk Girls' - LCD Soundsystem

'Fool's Day' - Blur

So yesterday was Record Store Day, a concept I find about as relevant as Earth Hour or whatever the fuck it's called. The idea of going to your local indie record store on a specific date because someone tells you to is quaint at best. The upside to it though is that many bands choose to enter into the spirit of the day, unlike yours truly, by releasing one-off collector's items for the day. So it is with Blur and their first collective recording since, oh, 2003? Anyway, here's Fool's Day. One of the more appealing aspects of Blur has always been Graham Coxon and he duly gets his wig-out moment towards the end of the song. If you're expecting End Of A Century or Parklife, click elsewhere. Official download info available on the official website here.
Fool's Day - Blur

Leonard Cohen confirms Sligo date. No, really.

It felt strange just typing that. It has been confirmed however that the Dorian Gray of popular culture will play Lissadell House on July 31st. Now that is a coup. The show will be part of a series of gigs over that weekend with other acts yet to be confirmed. Tickets not on sale yet but there's a presale on April 22nd should you wish to beat the rush - and what a rush it will be. More details here.
EDIT: Now it seems the gig has been removed from Len's official website pending official confirmation, though if the gig being announced on his own site isn't official confirmation, then I'm slightly lost. Anyway the latest is that there will be, in this case an official announcement about the official announcement, regarding the gig this Wednesday.
EDIT: This gig is now happening. Tickets go on sale on Monday next priced €80. If folk are willing to pay over a ton for the opportunity to watch Whitney Houston fall apart in the flesh, this one will sell out rapidly. If you fancy beating the rush, there'll be a link to a presale on this site on Saturday 24th April.

'Baby Lee' - Teenage Fanclub

Yup, it's pretty standard Teenage Fanclub fare and in this case, this is a good thing. Taken from Shadows which hits the streets on May 31st.
Baby Lee - Teenage Fanclub

Video: 'You Turn My Head Around' - Dean & Britta

Because it feels like the summer. And because it's Britta on a bike. "And baaaaayyyyyy-beeeee....."

'Horses' - To Rococo Rot

Veteran palindromic electronic trio To Rococo Rot return on June 29th with a new album Speculation. You can get a taste of what's to come by way of a download here. There's also a track entitled Working Against Time streaming over on Domino's site.

John Lydon still whoring himself then

In the week when Malcolm McLaren passed away, John Lydon proves that there's nothing he will not prostitute.

Godspeed You Black Emperor to return

Missing in action around these parts since late 2002 - has it really been that long? - GYBE are finally stirring once more. The band have announced plans to curate this year's Nightmare Before Christmas (curated in 2009 by My Bloody Valentine) and have announced a smattering of upcoming British and European shows. No word of a record yet and as the band don't really play the record business game - their website is an exercise in austerity and, bless them, looks as if it hasn't been given a facelift since they last released a record - it's unlikely they'll be tweeting news of forthcoming releases.
There's also a full, er, statement from the band regarding the above here.