The album includes contributions by Donald Fagen (Steely Dan), Pete Townshend (The Who), and Garth Hudson (The Band) plus members of Martha’s family including mother Kate McGarrigle and brother Rufus Wainwright.

Tour Dates

Martha Wainwright headlining:

June 12 Joe’s Pub
June 19 The Troubadour, Los Angeles, CA
July 23 Highline Ballroom, NY, NY

Martha Wainwright with KT Tunstall

August 4 Calvin Theater Northampton MA
August 6 Empire State Plaza Albany, NY
August 7 Fairfield Theatre Fairfield, CT
August 8 Borgata Music Box, Atlantic City, NJ
August 9 Virgin Festival Baltimore, MD
August 11 Meijer Gardens, Grand Rapids, MI
August 12 House Of Blues Cleveland, OH
August 13 LC Pavillion Columbus OH
August 14 Kresge Auditorium Interlochen, MI
August 15 The Pabst Theater, Milwaukee, WI
August 18 Denver Botanical, Denver, CO
August 20 Red Butte Garden Amphitheater, Salt Lake City, UT
August 22 Silver Legacy Resort Casino, Reno NV
August 25 Belly Up Aspen, Aspen, CO

Martha Wainwrights Wikipedia Discography:

Albums

* 2005 - Martha Wainwright (Drowned in Sound/Rounder)
* 2008 - I Know You’re Married But I’ve Got Feelings Too (Drowned in Sound)

EPs

* 2005 - I Will Internalize (Canada-only)
* 2004 - Bloody Mother Fucking Asshole
* 2002 - Factory
* 1999 - Martha Wainwright (Six Songs)
* 1997 - Ground Floor

Singles

* 2006 - “Set the Fire to the Third Bar” (by Snow Patrol)
* 2005 - “When the Day Is Short” (UK-only)
* 2005 - “Factory” (UK-only)
* 2005 - “Far Away” (UK-only)

Martha Wainwright: www.marthawainwright.com

Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel De Homem-Christo wrote and directed the 74 minute robot epic, Electroma, as a conceptual complement to the duo’s 2005 album Human After All (Virgin). Composed of five set-pieces and shot on 35 mm film stock in the California deserts, the film follows the leather clad avatars of Daft Punk, Hero Robots #1 and #2, down perpetual highways and endless deserts in the pursuit of humanity. Devoid of dialogue and anything from the Daft Punk catalogue, the film floats on the potency of lingering camera sequences and stark cinematography.

The characterization of Electroma as “experimental” and “inexcessible”, by critics and viewers alike shouldn’t come as a surprise. Bangalter and Homem revolt against the conventions of even their previous efforts D.A.F.T. and Interstella 5555, transposing Brian Eno and Curtis Mayfield into their dialectic on humanity.

Since the number of films by french auteurs, set in americanesque landscapes, that end happily, probably numbers around five, its safe to assume that our heroes don’t get their happily ever after. At one point in the film, the robots emerge from the care of invisible technicians in a bleach white operating room, with flesh colored liquid latex and mr. potato head prosthetics applied to their helmets. Symbolically human, the heroes are subjected to the scrutiny, fear, and misunderstanding of their robot brethen, as their brand new faces begin to melt in the sun.

The heroes eventually succumb to hopelessness and resolve to self destruct. Unable to do so by himself after the destruction of his partner, Robot #2’s only recourse is to smash his helmet to pieces and set himself on fire, unknowingly acquiring some semblance of humanity amidst self sacrifice and imperfection as he burns in the desert night.

-Justin Mitchell

Daft Punk’s Electroma
Thomas Bangalter, Guy-Manuel De Homem-Christo
DVD, Blu-Ray Disc, 74 Min., Vice Records
www.electroma.org

Daft Punk: www.daft-musique.com
Vice Records: www.vicerecords.com

Warped Tour 2008 Tour Dates (Band lineup below)
DATE CITY VENUE
Fri 6/20 Pomona, CA Pomona Fairgrounds
Sat 6/21 San Francisco, CA Pier 30/32
Sun 6/22 Ventura, CA Seaside Park
Wed 6/25 Phoenix, AZ Cricket Pavilion
Thu 6/26 Las Cruces, NM N.M.S.U. Practice Field
Sat 6/28 Salt Lake City, UT Utah State Fairgrounds
Sun 6/29 Denver, CO Invesco Field
Tue 7/1 St. Louis, MO Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
Wed 7/2 Kansas City, KS Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
Thu 7/3 Dallas, TX Superpages.com Center
Sat 7/5 San Antonio, TX Verizon Wireless Amphitheater
Sun 7/6 Houston, TX Sam Houston Race Park
Wed 7/9 Atlanta, GA Lakewood Amphitheater
Thu 7/10 Orlando, FL Central Florida Fairgrounds
Fri 7/11 Tampa, FL Vinoy Park
Sat 7/12 Miami, FL Bicentennial Park
Sun 7/13 Jacksonville, FL St. Johns County Fairgrounds
Mon 7/14 Charlotte, NC Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
Tue 7/15 Virginia Beach, VA Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
Wed 7/16 Washington DC Merriweather Post Pavilion
Thu 7/17 Cleveland, OH Time Warner Cable Amphitheater
Fri 7/18 Detroit, MI Comerica Park
Sat 7/19 Toronto, ON Downsview Park Allen Road
Sun 7/20 Montreal, QC Parc Jean Drapeau
Wed 7/23 Boston, MA Tweeter Center
Thu 7/24 Buffalo, NY Darien Lake Performing Arts Center
Fri 7/25 Camden, NJ Susquehanna Bank Center
Sat 7/26 Uniondale, NY Nassau Coliseum
Sun 7/27 Scranton, PA Toyota Pavilion
Mon 7/28 Englishtown, NJ Raceway Park
Tue 7/29 Pittsburgh, PA Post Gazette Pavilion
Wed 7/30 Cincinnati, OH Riverbend Music Center
Thu 7/31 Indianapolis, IN Verizon Wireless Music Center
Fri 8/1 Milwaukee, WI Marcus Amphitheatre
Sat 8/2 Chicago, IL First Midwest Bank Amphitheatre
Sun 8/3 Minneapolis, MN Canterbury Park
Tue 8/5 Saskatoon, SK Credit Union Centre
Wed 8/6 Calgary, AB Race City Speedway
Fri 8/8 Boise, ID Idaho Center Amphitheatre
Sat 8/9 Seattle, WA George Amphitheatre
Sun 8/10 Portland, OR Columbia Meadows
Wed 8/13 Fresno, CA Save Mart Center
Thu 8/14 San Diego, CA Cricket Wireless Amphitheatre
Fri 8/15 San Francisco, CA Shoreline Amphitheatre
Sat 8/16 Sacramento, CA Sleep Train Amphitheatre Lot
Sun 8/17 Los Angeles, CA Home Depot Center

Euro-punk design-dancers The Fashion, from Copenhagen, Denmark, will be touring with Alkaline Trio next month is support of their self-titled album released yesterday.

The Fashion’s debut album Rock Rock Kiss Kiss Combo was released in Denmark in September 2003. The group is lead by Jakob Printzlau, a successful underground graphic designer. Some of his work can be seen below.

6/13/2008 Tulsa, OK The Otherside
6/14/2008 Little Rock, AR The Village
6/15/2008 Birmingham, AL Matthew’s Bar & Grill
6/17/2008 Jacksonville, FL Freebird Live
6/18/2008 Columbia, SC Headliners
6/19/2008 Richmond, VA The National
6/20/2008 Allentown, PA Crocodile Rock Café
6/21/2008 New Haven, CT Toad’s Place
6/24/2008 Lancaster PA Chameleon
6/26/2008 Pittsburgh, PA Club Zoo
6/27/2008 Grand Rapids, MI Intersection
7/8/2008 Pontiac, MI Clutch Cargo’s
7/9/2008 Chicago, IL House of Blues
7/10/2008 Cleveland, OH House of Blues
7/11/2008 Baltimore, MD Rams Head Live
7/12/2008 New York, NY Fillmore NY at Irving Plaza
7/13/2008 Providence, RI Lupo’s
7/15/2008 Philadelphia, PA The Fillmore at the TLA
7/16/2008 Norfolk, VA Norva
7/18/2008 Atlanta, GA Center Stage
7/19/2008 Orlando, FL House of Blues
7/21/2008 Austin, TX La Zona Rosa
7/22/2008 Dallas, TX House of Blues
7/25/2008 Las Vegas, NV House of Blues
7/26/2008 Los Angeles, CA House of Blues
7/27/2008 San Diego, CA SOMA
7/29/2008 Portland, OR Roseland Theater
7/30/2008 Seattle, WA El Corazón
8/1/2008 Salt Lake City, UT In The Venue
8/2/2008 Denver, CO Cervantes
8/3/2008 Lawrence, KS The Granada

http://www.plastickid.dk/

http://www.thefashion.dk/

US DATES:
May 15- BROOKLYN- Southpaw: Develop Don’t Destroy Brooklyn Benefit
Jun 20- BOSTON- Berklee Performance Center- with My Brightest Diamond
Jun 27- NEW YORK- Joe’s Pub

UK DATES:
Aug 25- EDINBURGH- Cabaret Voltaire/ FRINGE FESTIVAL
Aug 28- ABERDEEN- Café Drummonds
Aug 29- INVERNESS- Hootanannys
Aug 31- DUNDEE- Fat Sams
Sep 2- GLASGOW- King Tuts
Sep 3- YORK- Fibbers
Sep 4- MANCHESTER- Night & Day
Sep 5- BIRMINGHAM- Glee Club Studio
Sep 6- NOTTINGHAM- Bodega Social
Sep 8- NORWICH- Arts Centre
Sep 9- LONDON- Borderline
Sep 10- BRISTOL- Louisianna
Sep 11- OXFORD- Bullington Arms
Sep 12- DORSET- END OF THE ROAD FESTIVAL

Clare & The Reasons live in Brooklyn, NY

www.myspace.com/claremuldaur
www.claremuldaur.com

Death Cab for Cutie’s

Rather than rely on their previous structured methodology of making music, both in recording and collaboratively writing in the studio, guitarist-producer Chris Walla transcribed live performances to two-inch tape. Recording with analog simultaneously freed the band from its usual meticulously planned approach and forced a faith-based live-performance commitment. The result, according to Gibbard, is a “certain kind of swagger that’s never been in our albums.”

The band recently switched from indie label Barsuk to Atlantic Records, the type of change that often draws speculation from fans and critics alike. But although they have made what Gibbard refers to as DCFC’s “ugliest, dirtiest, loneliest” songs to date, he insists the band is not giving the finger to Atlantic, tampering the sensationalism with a list of reasons why everything’s A-OK between the band and its new label.

Death Cab For Cutie has a history of experimenting with recording processes. “Over the years we went from an 8-track on the first record to a 16-track on the second to a 24-track in a tiny studio on the third,” he says. “The way our records have sounded throughout the years has always been a function of what we had in front of us.”

Money, too, plays a role in that decision process, he admits. Though DCFC is one of the most successful indie band of its time, Gibbard says that it still uses thinking similar to Depression-Era logic in its decision-making process. “Once we had the resources to do it on a large-scale level, you would think we’d spend every penny making the record, but it’s the opposite case.” To note, this year Gibbard will be touring with a new amp not purchased in Japan for thousands of dollars but built by Walla’s guitar tech, Jesse Quitslund, out of Gibbard’s two previous Sears’ Silvertone Twin-Twelve heads.

DCFC uses the same frugality when approaching the number of tracks that will be included on its albums, narrowing 20 or so tunes down to 11 songs for Narrow Stairs. “I can’t take credit for this statement, but it’s true,” Gibbard says, “Records have gotten too long. Even my favorite band, I don’t want 85 minutes of music in one sitting. Much of our approach has to do with trying to avoid that kind of stuff. Whether or not the album as a cultural event will mean anything — if it means anything in five or 10 years — I think we want to release music in that format, because it’s the format we work really well in.”

As for any lingering concerns about the fate of the band, Gibbard has this to say, “This being our sixth record, I highly doubt that what we’ve just made is going to be the kind of thing that makes everybody forget about us or congruently launches us. We’re never going to be U2.”

- Sheba White

Death Cab for Cutie: www.deathcabforcutie.com
Atlantic Records: www.atlanicrecords.com
Barsuk: www.barsuk.com