Don't forget that holiday EP too...

By Blurt Staff

The Pretenders announced today they will be the latest artist to be part of the iTunes "Originals" series. The Pretenders edition will be available exclusively at the iTunes Store starting December 23.  On top of this release the band has released a digital holiday EP which features a new recording of the band's classic "2000 Miles" as well as holiday classics "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus," "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" and "Blue Christmas." The version of  "Blue Christmas" will also be featured in the video game Rock Band.  

The Pretenders' "Originals" release contains new recordings of songs that trace the band's entire career and were recorded with the band's lineup of Chrissie Hynde, Martin Chambers, James Walbourne, Mark Spencer, and Nick Wilkinson. As previously announced in this space, the band will tour the US for six weeks starting January 29 in Albany (Eric Heywood, the pedal steel player from the last album will be rejoining the band for the tour replacing Mark Spencer). The Pretenders Original also includes interviews with Chrissie Hynde exploring the origins of songs, and the LP Version of "Love's A Mystery" from the band's critically lauded Break Up The Concrete.

Song list for iTunes Originals:

Almost Perfect
Don't Cut Your Hair
Love's A Mystery (LP Version)
My City Was Gone
One Thing Never Changed
Rosalee
Talk Of The Town
Tequila
Thumbelina

Just in time for new album The Century of Self

By Blurt Staff

 ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead just announced a national US tour in support of their new full-length - The Century of Self - out February 17 on the band's Richter Scale Records imprint on Justice Records.  The tour kicks off on the 19^th of February at the Granada Theater in Dallas , TX . Fresh on the heels of the album's release, it will take the Austin musicians coast to coast to perform at notable venues including the Bowery Ballroom in NYC and Slim's in San Francisco.

The Century of Self was produced and mixed by Chris Coady (TV on the Radio, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Grizzly Bear) at his DNA Studio in NYC's East Village .  The album was recorded Spring 2008 in Austin , TX with Mike McCarthy (Spoon, Patty Griffin) at The Mob House and Chris "Frenchie" Smith (Sixteen Deluxe, Smog, Jet) at The Bubble.  Featuring vocal contributions from Yeasayer and Dragons of Zynth, Trail of Dead's sixth full-length will mark a return to their indie roots since forming in 1994.

Go HERE to read BLURT's interview with the band about the album and their recent EP.

...Trail of Dead Tour Dates:

Feb.   19^th              Granada Theater                         Dallas , TX

          24^th              The EARL                                   Atlanta , GA

          26^th              Rock & Roll Hotel                        Washington , DC

          27^th              Music Hall of Williamsburg           Brooklyn , NY

          28^th              Bowery Ballroom                        New York , NY

Mar.   1^st                Middle East Downstairs                Cambridge , MA

          7^th                Triple Rock Social Club                Minneapolis , MN

          9^th                Bluebird Theater                        Denver, CO

          12^th              Neumo's                                    Seattle , WA

          16^th              Slim's                                        San Francisco , CA

Follows string of sold-out NC shows....

By Fred Mills

With BLURT faves the Avett Brothers heading towards a year-end countdown with five sold-out shows in North Carolina (Dec. 26, 27, 28 in Asheville; Dec. 30, 31 in Charlotte), the band is now announcing a spring tour opening for superstar Dave Matthews. It runs April 22 through May 6 and tickets officially go on sale Jan. 17 - these are amost guaranteed to be instant sellouts considering the draw of each artist.

Meanwhile, bandmember Scott Avett has been busy of his own accord - bet you didn't know he's a gifted artist - and is offering limited-edition prints at the upcoming shows. One is pictured above, and in a statement from Avett he explains what went into it and his efforts:

"The print marking the fifth series of shows presented by the Avett Brothers to celebrate the onset of the new year in Asheville NC and Charlotte NC was first realized while viewing MEAL AT EMMAUS I by Michelangelo Merisi, a.k.a "Caravaggio". The composition is to have this same sort of, men gathering at a table with a bit of urgency and distress, feel. The image provides a view of six men banding together and placing their trust in time, as unforgiving as it may be, in hopes that it will serve us all as the great healer and a reason to rejoice.

The elements of 2008-09 were documented while traveling during late summer of 2008. The six figures were drawn in Portland Oregon while the drapery was drawn by observing drapery in a hotel in Boise Idaho. The transfer and carving were executed in North Carolina while the printing was also done in NC at East Carolina University."

You can also view Avett's work at www.scottavett.com

Avett Brothers Tour Dates w/Dave Matthews:

4/22: Raleigh, NC Time Warner Cable Music Pavilion at Walnut Creek

4/24: Charlotte, NC Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre

4/28: Alpharetta, GA Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre At Encore Park

4/29: Alpharetta, GA Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre At Encore Park

5/1: The Woodlands, TX The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion

5/2: Dallas, TX Superpages.com Center

5/5: Albuquerque, NM Journal Pavilion

5/6: Phoenix, AZ Cricket Wireless Pavilion

Finally getting over here to promote their Constellation album The Hungry Saw.

By Fred Mills

For the first time in over five years the Tindersticks are headed to these shores. The UK band is still basking in the critical kudos for this year's The Hungry Saw, and anyone who's seen the band before can testify that in concert the group is utterly captivating, serving up, as the band's label puts it, "expertly conjured complex emotions and double-edged narratives through a sultry, swirling, finely orchestrated music that is gently uplifting, beautifully arranged, and shot through with dark tension."

Vocalist Stuart Staples' expressive, at times world-weary, but always passionate, voice has a lot to do with all that of course, but the large ensemble is a keenly-meshing group bringing scores of influences and musical gifts to the table. "In a live setting they mesmerize old fans and new with a profoundly literate and deeply moving song cycle that pulls from the group's majestic back catalogue while also featuring brilliant arrangements of the superb new album.... They create a kaleidoscope of gently stirring tunes balanced and emboldened by beautiful instrumental moments all topped by Staples' uniquely poignant voice."

The live band is a 7-piece, featuring founding members Stuart Staples (voice, guitar), David Boulter (organ, keyboards) and Neil Fraser (guitar), the new rhythm section of Dan McKinna (bass) and Thomas Belhom (drums), and Terry Edwards (brass) and Andrew Nice (cello). 

Read our review of the album HERE.


Tindersticks Tour Dates:

Wed. Mar. 4    Philadelphia, PA @ World Cafe Live
Thu.  Mar. 5    Washington, D.C. @ 9:30 Club
Fri.    Mar. 6    Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Masonic Temple
Sat.    Mar. 7    Boston, MA @ Somerville Theatre
Mon. Mar. 9    Montreal, QC @ La Sala Rossa
Tue.   Mar. 10  Toronto, ON @ Opera House
Wed.  Mar. 12  Chicago, IL @ Epiphany Episcopal Church

[photo credit: Richard Dumas]

Compiled by Blurt Staff

206 digital, satellite and hi-def channels and nothin' on? Not likely. Here are BLURT's top music television picks of the day. The time is followed by the network/cable/satellite channel, then the name of the program and/or featured artist(s). All times are EST. For a comprehensive hour-by-hour listing, go to the VH1 Rock On TV site. Note that for certain channels, shows frequently repeat during the day on or subsequent days.

TIME (EST) / CHANNEL / PROGRAM / ARTIST(S)

9:00 Syndicated: Ellen Degeneres: Britney Spears

12:00 Rave HD: From the Basement - Thom Yorke

1:00 Rave HD: Dave Fanning Interview - Radiohead

6:00 Sundance: Iconoclasts - Tony Hawk + Jon Favreau

8:00 Rave HD: Dave Fanning Interview - Paul Weller

9:00 VH1 Classic: FM

9:30 Fuse: Fall Out Boy - Live From Chicago

10:00 Rave HD: Beautiful Noise - Islands

11:35 CBS David Letterman: Fall Out Boy

11:35 NBC: Jay Leno: Relient K

12:35 CBS: Craig Ferguson: Don Rickles

12:00 ABC: Jimmy Kimmel Live!: the Cure

12:35 NBC: Late Night With Conan O'Brien: Fleet Foxes

1:35 NBC: Carson Daly: Bam Margera/ Dan Finnerty

CURRENT: La Blogotheque: the Dodos, Grand Archives

Only two, count ‘em, two weeks this time, punters.

By Fred Mills

The Hold Steady just announced dates for their Spring tour (it'll be preceded by a charity bash in Chicago on Jan. 15). The trek begins March 31 in Albany and will only run for two weeks, through April 15 in Sacramento - they must be worn out from nonstop touring in '08 in support of Stay Positive.

Opening act on all dates will be War On Drugs.

Tour Dates:

Jan 15 - Chicago, IL @ House of Blues (Cubs Charities event)

Mar 31- Albany, NY @ Valentine's

Apr 1 - Buffalo, NY @ The Tralf Music Hall

Apr 2 - Grand Rapids, MI @ Calvin College Fine Arts Center

Apr 3 - Urbana, IL @ Illini Courtyard Cafe

Apr 4 - Bloomington, IN @ Jake's Nightclub

Apr 6 - St. Louis, MO @ The Gargoyle

Apr 7 - Iowa City, IA @ Picador

Apr 8 - Omaha, NE @ Slowdown

Apr 10 - Boulder, CO @ Fox Theater

Apr 11 - Salt Lake City, UT @ Urban Lounge

Apr 13 - Reno, NV @ The Underground

Apr 14 - Stateline, NV @ Harrah's Tahoe South Shore Room

Apr 15 - Sacramento, CA @ Harlow's Night Club

Tour starts Feb. 12; tix can be had right now, bubba!

By Blurt Staff

BLURT fave Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit will be hitting the road in mid-February shortly before the release of the new self-titled album (Isbell's second since leaving the Drive-By Truckers), due Feb. 17 on Lightning Rod. See below for the scoop.

Pre-orders for tickets have already begun and will run until Dec. 19 at this site: http://jasonisbell.frontgatetickets.com/. Tour dates follow the album details.

 The 400 Unit is Derry deBorja (keyboards), Jimbo Hart (bass) and Browan Lollar (guitar). Matt Pence (Centro-matic/South San Gabriel) lends his talents as co-producer, drummer and engineer. The album was co-produced by Isbell and The 400 Unit with Matt Pence. "I want it to be known that it's a band record," says Isbell. "I want it to be known that it's something we all did together. Even though I wrote the songs, it was a very inclusive project." Isbell has posted the new track, "Seven-Mile Island," on the band's MySpace site.

The album was recorded at the renowned FAME Studios in Muscle Shoals, AL. Isbell, who Details Magazine calls "one of America's best young songwriters," is following in the tradition of American songwriters who have recorded in North Alabama. Much like Arthur Alexander, Eddie Hinton and Spooner Oldham, Isbell mixes a soulful vocal style with songs that are passionate and unrepentant in their sense of place and direct in their stubborn Southerness.

Isbell and The 400 Unit have played over 200 dates since the release of Sirens Of The Ditch  (including All Points West, Voodoo Music Experience and WXPN Freedom Fest) and will announce the first round of their 2009 dates soon.

Meanwhile, don't forget to check the BLURT video section - we've got some exclusive clips of Isbell performing acoustic versions of Sirens material along with interview material (such as the origin of the name "The 400 Unit") filmed in Asheville, NC, earlier this year.

TRACKLIST

1.  Seven-Mile Island                        

2.  Sunstroke

3.  Good

4.  Cigarettes and Wine

5.  However Long

6.  Coda

7.  The Blue

8.  No Choice in the Matter

9.  Soldiers Get Strange

10. Streetlights

11.  The Last Song I Will Write

 Tour Dates:

Thu-Feb-12 Birmingham, AL Workplay
Sat-Feb-14 Florence, AL Shoals Theater
Tue-Feb-17  Athens, GA Georgia Theatre
 Wed-Feb-18 Atlanta, GA The Earl
Fri-Feb-20 Raleigh, NC Lincoln Theatre
 Sat-Feb-21 Richmond, VA  The National
 Sun-Feb-22 Harrisonburg, VA The Pub
 Tue-Feb-24 Boston, MA TT the Bears
 Thu-Feb-26 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
 Fri-Feb-27 Philadelphia, PA    World Café Live
 Sat-Feb-28  Pittsburgh, PA Club Cafe
 Sun-Mar-01 Washington, DC 9:30 Club
 Mon-Mar-02 Cleveland, OH Beachland Ballroom
 Wed-Mar-04 Toronto, ONT  Horseshoe Tavern
 Thu-Mar-05 Buffalo, NY Mohawk Place
 Fri-Mar-06 Columbus, OH The Rumba Café
 Sat-Mar-07 Cincinnati, OH Southgate House
 Sun-Mar-08 Asheville, NC Orange Peel
 Fri-Mar-13 Louisville, KY Headliner's
 Sat-Mar-14 Nashville, TN The Mercy Lounge
Mar 18 - 22 Austin, TX SXSW

Note:

Sons of Roswell support 2/12 and 2/14
Benji Hughes supports 2/17 - 2/ 22 and 3/8
Deer Tick supports 2/24, 2/27 - 3/14

[Photo Credit: Allison V. Smith]

Now you can annoy everybody with some more Christmas music, and not just those in proximity to your cellphone...

By Blurt Staff

Weezer fans anxious (are there any other kinds?) to hear the much-talked-about Christmas songs the band recorded for iPhone get an early Christmas present today - well, they have to pay for it, but that's beside the point.

December 16 brings the digital release of six Christmas songs originally recorded for the recently released the #1 selling iPhone app "Tap Tap Revenge Christmas With Weezer." For the first time ever a band recorded music for an app but demand was so great from non-iPhone users that the band decided to make the songs available at all the usual digital retailers including Tunes and Amazon.com. This also marks the first time Apple released App music on iTunes.

The songs on the EP are: "We Wish You A Merry Christmas", "Silent Night", "O Holy Night", "The First Noel", "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" and "O Come, All Ye Faithful."

By Blurt Staff

The 30^th annual Blues Music Awards will take place May 7 in Memphis - among the nominees this time are the Mannish Boys, Buddy Guy, B.B. King, Elvin Bishop and Magic Slim. For a complete list of the 30th Blues Music Awards Nominees, click here: http://www.blues.org/bluesmusicawards/nominees.php4

Full details follow:

WHAT: The Blues Music Awards

WHEN: Thursday, May 7, 2009

WHERE: Cook Convention Center, 255 N. Main, Memphis, TN

TICKETS: $125, available December 16, 2008 via http://www.blues.org or 901.527.2583 x10. (Tables of 10 are $1200.)

The Blues Foundation has confirmed the thirtieth annual Blues Music Awards, a seven-plus hour throw-down featuring dozens of incredible musicians and honoring the best of the blues world. Blues Foundation members will be able to vote starting today, through March 1, with the results determining the winners.

West coast-based group The Mannish Boys lead the pack this year with six nominations, including band, traditional album and album of the year in addition to individual nominations for band members Richard Innes (drums), Kid Ramos (guitar), and Larry Taylor (bass).  Tied with four nominations each are slide guitar legend Elvin Bishop, pianist Eden Brent, songstress Janiva Magness, soul man Curtis Salgado, and former truck driver Watermelon Slim. Buddy Guy is nominated for three awards and B.B. King for two.

The Mississippi-based Homemade Jamz Blues Band are the youngest nominees at 9, 14, and 16 years of age. Sadly, Sean Costello received two posthumous nominations while Jeff Healey received one. Chicago elder statesman and torch bearer Magic Slim earned three nods. Lurrie Bell earned two nominations for an album he made while grieving the loss of his wife and his father, harp man Carrie Bell.

The Blues Foundation has added a Rock Blues category for the first time in 2009, with nominations going to Gary Moore, Jeff Healey, Michael Burks, Smokin' Joe Kubek & Bnois King, Sonny Landreth, and Walter Trout.

Performers have not yet been confirmed for the 2009 show but all nominees are invited to take the stage, showing a broad range of blues styles from solo resonator fingerpicking to soul-blues shouters. For the blues fan, it's the only way to see a lineup like this and it annually threatens to rage well into the night.

The awards ceremony and concert will be broadcast live by Sirius XM Satellite Radio's B.B. King's Bluesville channel. The Blues Music Awards will be shot in HD for a DVD to be released in by October, 2009.

The Blues Foundation has 3,000 individual dues-paying members around the world and 160 affiliated grassroots, member-based local blues societies in a dozen countries.

The Blues Music Awards are produced by The Blues Foundation, a non-profit organization established to preserve Blues history, celebrate Blues excellence, support Blues education and ensure the future of this uniquely American art form. In addition to the Blues Music Awards, the Foundation also produces the Blues Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, the International Blues Challenge and the Keeping the Blues Alive Awards. It fosters education through its Blues in the Schools programming and supports the medical needs of Blues musicians with its HART Fund.  Throughout the year, the Foundation staff serves the worldwide Blues community with answers, contact information and news.   For more information or to join The Blues Foundation, log onto www.blues.org

Well, why not? Last year it was Led Zep rumors. If neither artist pans out they can always get a Phish tribute band and John Cafferty & the Beaver Brown Band to sub... or an encore set from Lez Zeppelin....

By Fred Mills

Gentlemen, start your rumors. RollingStone.com is reporting from "reliable sources" (uh-huh) that Phish is slated to be a two-night headliner at Bonnaroo '09 (which we previously announced in this space as taking place next June 11-14 in Manchester, TN). According to the report, while the organizers of the annual gathering of the tribes rarely announces the lineups until February, the aforementioned reliable sources say that Phish is being tapped in order to restore "the fest to its jam-friendly roots." And of course Phish already announced their impending reunion a couple of months ago, so it makes sense.

Meanwhile, RollingStone.com is also saying that there's strong buzz about Bruce Springsteen potentially being the Sunday night festival closer. Which ain't a bad thing at all! The Boss will have a new album out early next year and will likely be making the rounds of stadiums in the summer, but a festival date would mark an entire new deal for the E Streeters.