The Post-Rockist

Devendra Banhart announces new album and tour

Devendra Banhart, the Houston-born purveyor of the dirty hippie beard and the proverbial figurehead of the so-called Naturalismo scene, has announced that the title of his fifth studio album will be Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon, which of course leads to the assumption that either Mr. Banhart has been indulging in the literature of Gerald Vizenor, or that, well, there’s no point in beating around the bush, now is there, he has been continuing to enjoy the mind-altering effects of certain psychoactive substances while composing his jittery, off-kilter dirty hippie songs. Songs with titles such as “Cristobal,” “Samba Vexillographica,” and “So Long Old Bean” (presumably a Wodehouse nod). Smokey will feature 16 new songs in all, several of which were “recorded on a sailboat on the way to Catalina” (source), with embellishments from such exotic-sounding instruments as zithers, tablas, duck calls, guitars, freedom chimes, and pots and pans. Continuing in the tradition of 2005’s magnificent Cripple Crow, the new album will showcase the various talents of a coterie of long-haired folkies, such as Vetiver’s Andy Cabic, co-producer Noah Georgeson, Joanna Newsom’s brother Pete, and others.

Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon will be released September 25 on XL Recordings. The tour, however, begins even sooner than that:

08-10 Oslo, Norway - Øya Festival
08-11 Gothenburg, Sweden - Way Out West Festival
08-13 Hamburg, Germany - Knust
08-15 Cologne, Germany - Gebaude 9
08-16 Hasselt, Belgium - Pukkelpop Festival
08-17 Biddinghuizen, Netherlands - Lowlands Festival
08-19 Brecon Beacons Powys, Wales - Glanusk Park (Green Man Festival)
08-21 Paris, France - L’Europeen
08-23 Glasgow, Scotland - The Arches
08-24 Leeds, England - Leeds Festival
08-26 Reading, England Reading Festival
09-01 Vancouver, British Columbia - Commodore Ballroom *
09-02 Seattle, WA - Bumbershoot Festival *
09-04 Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom *
09-06 Santa Cruz, CA - Rio Theater *
09-07 Berkeley, CA - Zellerbach Hall *
09-10 Denver, CO - Ogden Theatre (Native American benefit) #
09-12 Omaha, NE - Sokol Auditorium #
09-13 Lawrence, KS - Liberty Hall Theater #
09-15 Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue #
09-16 Milwaukee, WI - Pabst Theater #
09-18 Chicago, IL - Portage Theater !
09-19 Detroit, MI - Majestic Theater !
09-21 Toronto, Ontario - Danforth Music Hall !
09-22 Montreal, Quebec - Le National !
09-23 Burlington, VT - Davis Center Grand Ballroom at University of Vermont !
09-25 Boston, MA - Roxy Ballroom !
09-27 New York, NY - Grand Ballroom !
09-29 Philadelphia, PA - Theatre of Living Arts !
10-01 Washington, DC - Sixth & I Historic Synagogue !
10-04 Nashville, TN - City Hall $
10-06 Dallas, TX - Granada Theater $
10-07 Austin, TX - La Zona Rosa $
10-09 Albuquerque, NM - Sunshine Theater (Native American benefit) %
10-10 Tucson, AZ - Rialto Theater %
10-12 Phoenix, AZ - Marquee Theater %
10-13 Los Angeles, CA - Orpheum Theatre %

* with Noah Georgeson
# with Rio En Medio
! with Matteah Baim
$ with Jana Hunter
% with Hecuba

Matthew and Eleanor Friedberger are Widowed

Not to be outdone, the prolific Fiery Furnaces have announced that they will soon be releasing their sixth studio album, entitled Widow City. According to the very fascinating Thrill Jockey press release, the new album was inspired in part by imaginary divinations taken from Ouija boards, Atlantic record labels, the cultural pages of local community minority newspapers, scratched Van Morrison CD jewel cases, or other found objects the compelled the siblings Friedberger to write down what object in question would want them to say, or what they imagined the object should sound like. To wit:

She [Eleanor Friedberger] would clench in her fists the names of selected lady magazine authoresses from the years 1968-1976 and, extending out her index fingers, type up what the old ladies “told” her. Or rather, “told” them, meaning her index fingers. She’d then send the notes to her brother [Matthew], who would modify and add to them according to what he imagined were their “secret intentions.” If the sister objected, the brother would assign responsibility to the Ouija board.

Makes perfect sense.

While the lyrics will no doubt be long-winded, childlike, and obtuse, the music, though used expressly for thematic purposes, has been honed to a point of “simplicity and schematism.” Indeed, with Matthew playing all of the instruments - including a rare Chamberlin, popularized by the likes of Bowie, Eno, and Brion, for his string, woodwind, and brass sounds - the style of play has an overwhelming “Paul McCartney-izing” effect. The only instrument he doesn’t play are the drums, which are being handled by the road-tested Robert D’Amico, who has played with the band since 2005. Longtime engineer Bill Skibbe is still behind the decks, as is Tortoise’s John McEntire.

While Widow City has already leaked to the interwebs thanks to the thoughtless efforts of some impatient nits, the rest of us will have to wait until Oct. 9 to hear it in its entirety. However, if you would like a peek, the band did post some hopelessly random snippets of the recording process on YouTube, which you can find here, here, over here, and, of course, here. The tracklist is as follows:

01 The Philadelphia Grand Jury
02 Duplexes Of The Dead
03 Automatic Husband
04 Ex-Guru
05 Clear Signal From Cairo
06 My Egyptian Grammar
07 The Old Hag Is Sleeping
08 Japanese Sleepers
09 Navy Nurse
10 Uncle Charlie
11 Right By Conquest
12 Restorative Beer
13 Wicker Whatnots
14 Cabaret Of The Seven Devils
15 Pricked In The Heart
16 Widow City

Documentary Schmocumentary

Finally, while this may not fit under the “news” category, Aquarium Drunkard gives us a nice, brief review of a relatively new Nilsson documentary, Who is Harry Nilsson (And Why is Everybody Talkin’ About Him)?. Since we love Harry here at the Post-Rockist HQ, and since this is the first we’ve heard of it, we thought we’d share. You can view the trailer here:

Also check out part 1 of 5 of a strange, behind-the-scenes documentary-style look at Nilsson in his Son of Schmilsson period, called Did Somebody Drop His Mouse?:

-Reported by Todd