I've just posted a review of the latest from Summer Hymns, Backward Masks. This was just released from Misra Records. The Hymns are due for a tour with Folklore early next year in support of the album, and I'll post dates as they're announced.

Review: Summer Hymns/Backward Masks

My First Keyboard is the moniker used by Of Montreal's keyboardist, Dottie Alexander, when she takes center stage with the band. It's not an ongoing project, and she hasn't released any further My First Keyboard recordings since 2000.

There are 3 recordings to date. The first, "Christmas is Only Good if You are a Girl (Boy)," appeared on the Kindercore compilation Christmas in Stereo, which also featured a mirror-image Of Montreal track, "My Favorite Christmas (in a Hundred Words or Less)." In 2000 the Kindercore singles club released a Marshmallow Coast/My First Keyboard split single. Dottie, with Of Montreal in tow, contributed "Hey Friend" and "The You I Created." So closely associated is Dottie's solo project with Of Montreal that the latter track actually appeared on Horse & Elephant Eatery (No Elephants Allowed).

When Optical Atlas asked when we'd see a My First Keyboard album see the light of day, Dottie replied, "Hmmm. Never? Yeah. Probably never." So enjoy these rarities.

Christmas is Only Good if You are a Girl (Boy)
Hey Friend
The You I Created

Julian Koster of The Music Tapes made a rare online appearance today at the Elephant 6 Townhall. The thread of interest was discussing the new John Cameron Mitchell film Shortbus. Mitchell, who also directed Hedwig and the Angry Inch, is rumored to be collaborating with longtime friend Koster on a musical children's film. Koster wanted to clarify that he did not work on Shortbus (he's thanked in the credits, but did not participate in the film), and made it clear the film he and Mitchell want to make together is still in the planning stages. Among the interesting revelations in the posting is that Mitchell actually provided the voice for the Smoke on the Music Tapes track "Smoke is a Fireman's Friend" (which we featured in Optical Atlas a few months ago). He also promises some big Music Tapes information soon--which, I'm guessing, has to do with the new album, and a possible tour.

You can read the full thread here.

If you want to learn more about Shortbus (which I highly recommend to adventurous viewers), you can read a review at my other blog.

We reported yesterday that Polyvinyl was selling copies of Of Montreal's new single on their website. Now they've updated it with the CD and LP releases of Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? and the CD EP Icons, Abstract Thee. The EP will be packaged with 2XLP version of the album, but the CD EP contains an extra track. The ideal method, unless you're a vinyl junkie (and who isn't?), is to order the Hissing Fauna + Icons CD bundle for $15. Copies ship early - January 12!

You can take a look through the online store here, or look at yesterday's report, with additional info, here.

Check back later today for your weekly dose of free Elephant 6 MP3s...

Two of my favorite bands have live material seeping onto the internet today.

Daytrotter, which recently featured an exclusive performance by Of Montreal, now has Elf Power in the studio. The band performs four songs: "The Arrow Flies Close," "An Old Familiar Scene," "Come Lie Down with Me," and "Back to the Web." There's also an interview with Andrew Rieger in which he describes infiltrating a sex cult and riding on alligators with Jeff Mangum!

Elf Power at Daytrotter

Meanwhile, our friends at Southern Shelter have posted a recent Summer Hymns performance from the EARL. The Hymns have just released their best album, Backward Masks, on Misra Records, and lots of the new material is featured in this full live set.

Southern Shelter: Summer Hymns at the EARL 11-15-06

Polyvinyl Records is now taking orders for the first 7" single from Of Montreal's next album, Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer? "She's a Rejecter" features cover art by David Barnes and comes in either blue or yellow vinyl--you pick the color. B-sides include "Bunny Ain't No Kind of Rider," also from the upcoming full-length, and the exclusive "Little Rock." It's limited to 2000 copies.

Polyvinyl is also offering a 12", Faberge Falls for Shuggie DJ Info Edition. "Faberge Falls for Shuggie" is the A-Side, "She's a Rejecter" the B-Side. This is limited to 500 copies.

Both can be ordered now directly from Polyvinyl at their online store. They seem to be shipping immediately (mine shipped today).

You can also stream the new album at Polyvinyl's website. The album comes out January 23.

UPDATE: You Ain't No Picasso has a great photo of the "triple gatefold" LP, plus the info that a bonus EP will be available with the LP containing 5 tracks. The CD version of the EP will not be bundled with the main album, as it was on their last, but available exclusively from the band on tour or through Polyvinyl's website. Here are the tracks of the EP:

Du Og Meg
Voltaic Crusher/Undrum To Muted Da
Derailments In A Place Of Our Own
Miss Blonde, Your Papa is Failing (exclusive to CD EP)
No Conclusion

You can download tracks from the new album at Polyvinyl's Hissing Fauna page and at YANP's coverage.

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. I feel rejuvenated, so let's get back to Elephant 6 business.

Folklore is the band fronted by Jimmy Hughes (Elf Power), whose first album, The Ghost of H.W. Beaverman, is due for release next year; we hosted a preview of the album here, and it's an album worth eager anticipation, recounting the legend of Beaverman's ghost with guest vocals by members of Elf Power, Gerbils, Masters of the Hemisphere, The Instruments, I am the World Trade Center, and more. Folklore has scheduled a show on Thursday, December 14, at the Caledonia in Athens, where they'll be playing with M Coast and Fabulous Bird. This is in advance of a January/February 2007 tour with the Summer Hymns that's being put together right now, where they'll be travelling up the Midwest and over to the East Coast. (They'll be in Chicago on January 26.) More details to come, but if you want to see them in your town, you can contact the band with suggestions through their MySpace page. They should be selling copies of their new EP, Carpenter's Falls, as well as special pressings of their full length.

Folklore on MySpace

About that band they'll be playing with on December 14, Fabulous Bird: it's the band of Peter Alvanos, who played with An Observatory, the Elephant 6'ers gathered for the Athens R.E.M. tribute concert a few months ago. He makes beautifully composed folk-pop out of Athens, and to celebrate the holidays he has posted an exclusive Christmas single, "It's Christmas Time Again," which you can download from his MySpace page. The single is recorded and produced by Bill Doss of The Sunshine Fix. Alvanos wrote the song and plays drums and guitars; Bill Doss contibutes bass, tambourines, kazoos, xylophone, bells, shakers, and background vocals. This is a band well worth hearing.

Fabulous Bird on MySpace

It's also a good time to remind everyone of the Optical Atlas contest to win a free copy of the Marbles Christmas single; be sure to enter here for a chance to win!

I thought I'd put this blog to bed for the week for the Thanksgiving holiday, but I just had to blog about this: Brian Heater, who wrote an interview with Beulah's Miles Kurosky that you can read at our site, has just contributed a tribute article for Brian Wilson's SMiLE in New York Press, an alternative weekly. Heater asked 5 musicians and artists to pick their favorite track from the album and explain why they love it. What makes it worth mentioning here is that 3 of the 5 interview subjects are E6'ers: W. Cullen Hart of Circulatory System and Olivia Tremor Control, Robert Schneider of The Apples in Stereo, and Casper Fandango (aka Jason Nesmith) of Casper & the Cookies.

Will picks "Do You Dig Worms?" (AKA "Do You Like Worms [Do You Dig Worms]?"), which the Olivias covered on a Beach Boys tribute album. Robert picks "Heroes & Villains," which he covered live with the Apples; you can hear that recording on the Let's Go! EP. Casper picks the lovely "Surf's Up." You can read their explanations below:

Smiling Brian: Fans Show Love for the Beach Boy

To promote the release of their new album, Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?, Of Montreal is embarking on another epic tour of North America. This one might be even more mind-blowing than most, as Kevin Barnes mentioned in a recent interview with Pitchfork that he sold "Wraith Pinned to the Mist (and Other Games)" to Outback Steakhouse to help raise the production values on their live shows. Note that one of these shows is with that other Barnes, Jeremy: A Hawk and a Hacksaw. An April/May European tour is in the planning stages.

By the way, keep checking their MySpace page, as new Of Montreal material has a tendency to pop up there on a regular basis...

AA=All Ages
* w/ A Hawk And A Hacksaw
** w/ Enon
*** w/ Elekibass
$ w/ Grand Buffet & Mixel Pixel
$$ w/ Grand Buffet
% w/ Peachcake

U.S./CANADA
1-19 - Memphis, TN - HiTone AA *
1-20 - New Orleans, LA - Republic 18+ *
1-21 - San Antonio, TX - White Rabbit AA *
1-22 - Lubbock, TX - Jake's Backroom AA *
1-23 - Albuquerque, NM - Launchpad AA *
1-24 - Tempe, AZ - The Clubhouse AA %
1-25 - Park City, UT - Music On Main at Sundance AA
1-26 - Los Angeles, CA - El Rey AA **
1-27 - Los Angeles, CA - Avalon AA **
1-28 - Los Angeles, CA - Troubadour AA **
1-30 - San Diego, CA - SOMA AA **
1-31 - Santa Cruz, CA - The Attic AA **
2-1 - San Francisco, CA - Bottom of the Hill AA **
2-2 - San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall AA **
2-3 - San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall AA **
2-5 - Arcata, CA - Kate Buchanan Hall @ Humboldt St Univ. 18+ **
2-6 - Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom AA **
2-7 - Vancouver, BC - Richards On Richards 19+
2-8 - TBA
2-9 - Seattle, WA - Showbox AA **
2-10 - Eugene, OR - W.O.W. Hall AA **
2-12 - Sacramento, CA - Union Ballroom @ Sacramento St AA **
2-13 - Las Vegas, NV - TBA
2-14 - Tuscon, AZ - Rialto AA **
2-16 - Austin, TX - Emo's AA ***
2-17 - Houston, TX - Numbers AA ***
2-18 - Dallas, TX - Gypsy Ballroom 17+ ***
2-19 - Norman, OK - Meacham Auditorium AA ***
2-20 - Lawrence, KS - Granada AA ***
2-21 - Columbia, MO - Blue Note AA ***
2-22 - St Louis, MO - Mississippi Nights AA ***
2-23 - Birmingham, AL - Bottletree AA ***
2-24 - Atlanta, GA - Variety Playhouse AA ***
3-5 - Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle AA $
3-6 - Fall's Church, VA - State Theatre 18+ $
3-7 - Clinton, NY - The Annex @ Hamilton College AA $
3-8 - Philadelphia, PA - Trocadero AA $
3-9 - New York, NY - Irving Plaza 16+ $
3-10 - New York, NY - Irving Plaza 16+
3-11 - Boston, MA - Avalon AA $$
3-12 - Montreal, QC - La Tulipe AA $$
3-13 - Toronto, ON - Opera House AA $$
3-14 - Detroit, MI - Magic Stick AA $$
3-15 - Chicago, IL - Cabaret Metro AA $$
3-16 - Minneapolis, MN - First Avenue AA
3-17 - Milwaukee, WI - Pabst Theatre AA
3-19 - Cleveland, OH - Beachland Ballroom AA
3-20 - Newport, KY - Southgate House 18+
3-21 - Nashville, TN - Mercy Lounge 18+
3-22 - Asheville, NC - Grey Eagle AA
3-23 - Columbia, SC - Headliners 16+
3-24- TBA
3-29 - Gainesville, FL - Abbey Road 18+
3-30 - Miami, FL - Studio A AA
3-31 - Orlando, FL - The Club At Firestone AA
4-1 - Jacksonville, FL - Freebird Live AA
4-2 - Tallahassee, FL - The Moon AA

Casper & the Cookies recently appeared on the over-the-phone-performance show "Phoning It In" (WMBR 88.1FM Cambridge, MD), performing a number of songs from their new release, The Optimist's Club, which actually sold out of its first printing. You can now hear their performance at the blog Lo-Fi is the Right Fi. (You have to click on the title of that website's blog post to hear it.)

Casper & the Cookies on Phoning It In

Purchase The Optimist's Club at Happy Happy Birthday to Me Records, or read our rave review first. Check out tour dates here.

Elijah Wood, best known as "Frodo" from Lord of the Rings and founder of The Apples in Stereo's new label, Simian Records, actually spent some time during the recent CMJ Festival to shoot the first video, "Energy," from the Apples' new album, New Magnetic Wonder. He is scheduled to appear on the Jimmy Kimmel show next week (I'm not sure of the date; the website doesn't have him listed), and word is that he will try to get a clip from the video shown, as he couldn't fit it into his recent appearance on Conan O'Brien.

He's been making the talk show rounds because he is appearing in two new films, "Bobby" and "Happy Feet," the latter in which he actually had all of his limbs sawn off just so he could fit in the penguin suit, such is his DeNiro-like craft. (No, wait...I'm thinking of his appearance in "Sin City.") Anyway, he DID get to plug the Apples on the Today Show, and you can see a clip of him doing just that right here:

Elijah Wood Talks Apples in Stereo on the Today Show

Bi-Fi Records is offering 20 free copies of the Marbles Christmas single, Christmas Song b/w Holiday Mood, to readers of Optical Atlas. In this 7" vinyl release, Robert Schneider (The Apples in Stereo) provides two gorgeous melodies to brighten your holiday season.

Send your name and shipping address in an email with the subject heading "Marbles Contest" (or something similar) to opticaljeff76@yahoo.com by midnight CST on Friday, December 8 to be entered into the contest. This contest is open to international participants. Good luck!

Yep Rock/Simian Records is taking pre-orders for the new Apples in Stereo album, New Magnetic Wonder, at their website. 250 "SuperFan Packs" are being offered exclusively on the website until December 10. Those who order the pack are guaranteed a (vinyl) copy of the album before Christmas, as well as a CD, autographed poster, and...well...here's the full listing:

* New Magnetic Wonder LP
Limited edition double gatefold LP pressed on 180 gram vinyl includes a 12"x 24" poster by Andrew McLaughlin (popcollage.com) as well as an exclusive bonus track, "Atom Bomb" (you'll receive it by Christmas! Yes!)
* New Magnetic Wonder Enhanced CD
Enhanced CD contains many hidden gems, including Robert Schneider's very own "Non-Pythagorean Scale" with MIDI files and explanation for fan usage, as well as films, an extra mp3, song lyrics and liner notes (you'll receive it on release date, February 6)
* Autographed Apples Poster featuring the winning design from The Apples logo design contest (arrival by Christmas! Double yes!)
* Limited Edition T-Shirt featuring winning design from logo design contest
Available in adult sizes S, M, L, and XL (arrival on February 6)
* FREE Apples holiday song, "Holiday Mood" – instantly available for download in your Stash!
* FREE "Can You Feel It?" ringtone

Let it be noted that the "Holiday Mood" song is an Apples in Stereo remake of the Marbles version which appeared a couple years ago on the single Christmas with Marbles. It's lovely.

I ordered my Super FanPack. You should too. Note that if you don't want to shell out $55 for the Super FanPack, just pre-ordering the album will get you free downloads of the "Holiday Mood" song and the "Can You Feel It?" ringtone.

You can also take a look at the album artwork at that website.

To top it off, Pitchfork reports that the Apples in Stereo have been hand-picked by Yoko Ono to contribute to her remix album, Yes, I'm a Witch, which will be released by Astralwerks in February (same month as New Magnetic Wonder--a good month, a very good month). The Apples will be covering "No One Can See Me Like You Do." Other artists contributing to the record include Cat Power, The Flaming Lips, The Polyphonic Spree, and more.

Denver's Dressy Bessy is hitting the road and heading West this month and next. With tour dates beginning to dry up as the snow starts falling, you can at least count on Denver's finest rock band to melt away a clearing in your town. Dates listed below, and we'll keep updating them at our Dressy Bessy Shows page.
Dressy Bessy - Upcoming Shows

11.29.06 Norman, OK @ Opolis
11.30.06 Denton, TX @ Rubber Gloves
12.01.06 Austin, TX @ Mohawk
12.02.06 Dallas, TX @ The Door
12.08.06 Denver, CO @ Lion's Lair
12.09.06 Denver, CO @ Lion's Lair
12.10.06 Salt Lake City, UT @ Urban Lounge
12.12.06 Seattle, WA @ Chop Suey
12.13.06 Portland, OR @ Towne Lounge
12.14.06 San Francisco, CA @ Slim's
12.17.06 Phoenix, AZ @ Modified Arts
12.18.06 Albuquerque, NM @ Launchpad
12.19.06 Aspen, CO @ Belly Up

Samantha from Ideal Free Distribution has written in that The New Sound of Numbers have added a last-minute show in Lexington, KY's Mecca club, and the Marbles will be opening with John Ferguson (Ulysses), but billed as The Marbles and The Silver Masked Tenor, which is better described by Samantha herself, in a blurb she wrote for a Lexington weekly:

Thursday, November 16th, Schneider and John Ferguson will be performing as Marbles and The Silver Masked Tenor at Mecca. From the Marble himself: "Marbles is Robert Schneider's solo project, the Silver Masked Tenor is John Ferguson's alter ego-- John will be joining Robert for dueling acoustic guitar wizardry." Since Ferguson left Ulysses, he and Schneider hadn't collaborated musically until last week when Ferguson joined the Apples in Stereo onstage at the CMJ Festival, and now this presumably impromptu set. Could this lead to even more future pop creations together?

This is going to be tomorrow night at Mecca in Lexington. Anyone in the area, I strongly urge you to attend!

I've just posted a review of the new M Coast album, Say it in Slang. This comes highly recommended. You can read the review here.

In 1999 I was browsing a record store in Salt Lake City, delighting in different Elephant 6 finds--it was clear someone working the store was a fan--like the Elf Power Come On EP and Of Montreal's The Bird Who Continues to Eat the Rabbit's Flower. But I really struck the gold mine when I looked up Olivia Tremor Control. Next to the Dusk at Cubist Castle bonus "Explanations" CD, which I quickly tossed in the bag, was a completely odd-looking release with no title on the cover except the letter "T." The artwork looked like W. Cullen Hart's, so I figured it must be OTC related, but the spine said The Frosted Ambassador, and it was a Kindercore release. Thinking it might be one of those things I never see again, I also threw it in the bag.

The album consisted mostly of instrumentals on synthesizers, guitar, toy piano, etc., though the first track seemed to actually be a song. The liner notes contained blank spaces in lieu of track titles, with a request for the listener to provide his or her own. A glance at the Kindercore website didn't help much, as the biography of the band was clearly fictional. But I did know that "The Frosted Ambassador" was the name of a sleigh-bells-driven instrumental on Dusk at Cubist Castle, so I figured it was an off-shoot of some kind. Well-grounded rumors indicated it was actually a side project by OTC's Eric Harris, but everyone was certain that the first track on the album was actually "Silverbug," and was attributed to OTC when it appeared on the third Kindercore release, Treble Revolution Volume 2 (1996), which featured cover art by Great Lakes' Dan Donahue.

The Frosted Ambassador sort of vanished, although there's been hearsay of a second album in the works for Cloud. But now you can listen to the complete version of "Silverbug" from Treble Revolution, unmarred by the cross-fading on the Frosted Ambassador album. Olivia Tremor Control completists only? Not at all, it's a good song!

The Olivia Tremor Control - Silverbug

Sloan at the Southern Shelter blog seems to be branching out: today he offers video of a recent Elf Power performance last April at the Georgia Theater in Athens. A bit torrent link is offered at his site, plus a streaming video excerpt.

Elf Power at the Georgia Theater, Athens, GA 4-01-06

This morning I posted a (much-belated) review of Liberty Seeds, the new album by The New Sound of Numbers, released last month on Cloud Recordings. You can read it here. More reviews will be coming shortly--probably later today, as I play catch-up.

Also, the Ideal Free Distribution, a wonderful new band out of Lexington whose debut is coming out next month on Happy Happy Birthday to Me Records, is seeking an animator or director to create their first video (for "Mr. Wilson"). Robert Schneider, who co-mixed the album, has put out an inquiry in this Elephant 6 Townhall thread. Interested parties will want to post in that thread.

I've just posted an in-depth interview with the founders of Dark Meat, the Athens supergroup that's about to make its debut on Orange Twin Records (November 21). Singer/songwriter Jim McHugh and bassist Ben Clack detail the band's origins and explain how Dark Meat slowly became a musical collective of its own. MP3s included.

In the Courtyard with: Dark Meat

It's good to finally have something to post about The Sunshine Fix, the band of Olivia Tremor Control's Bill Doss. Sloan at Southern Shelter has posted a 2004 Athfest concert by the band, which highlights a nice mix of tracks from his first two albums. You can read our 2006 interview with Bill Doss right here.

Sunshine Fix at Athfest 6/19/04

Shamefully, I hadn't checked in at the excellent website Urban Pollution for a few weeks, but Adam at the site has set me straight with a round-up of their recent Elephant 6-related features.

First, they've got more information on the upcoming 63 Crayons album Spoils for Survivors, and even a tidbit about that bonus CD-R that will be sent to those who pre-order the album. You can read the details here, and pre-order the album at the band's website.

They also have two reviews of interest: Liberty Seeds by The New Sound of Numbers and Say it in Slang by M Coast. Both reviews are worth reading. Mine are still forthcoming, but I hope to get them up at this site within a couple days along with a number of others.

Zaby at Tractor Beam just dropped the news that Elijah Wood, founder of Simian Records and an actor best known as Frodo the hobbit, will be appearing on Tavis Smiley's PBS show tonight, talking about Simian Records and that band he just signed, The Apples in Stereo. Sorry for the late word...hope you can catch it!

Tavis Smiley on PBS

Well, technically all Von Hemmling tracks are "rare," but it's good to see that Jim McIntyre has updated his website with a slew of old tracks for download. You can grab them here. Most intriguing is "99 from 1999 and 2000," which is described as "a piece that consists of 99 song ideas dictated into my handheld cassette recorder."

A couple months ago Jim also uploaded the entirety of his otherwise unreleased experimental album La Guerre Est Meurtre as lossless .wav files. You can get those here (but be patient, it may take a while to download).

More MP3s and information about the band is available in our interview with Von Hemmling.

Well, if you don't like the direction this country is heading, this is the day you can change the makeup of the Senate and the Congress, so get out and vote.

On the other hand, as the Visitations would tell you, if you don't know what's going on and don't care, don't vote. Today's Tuesday cautionary tale comes from Davey Wrathgabar's 2004 Visitations album, Propaganda. You can read (and download) more from the band in our Davey interview, Liner Notes: Davey Wrathgabar.

The Visitations - Florida

The Apples in Stereo played Piano's for the CMJ festival, and stomped out a number of new songs as well as oldies. Michael, a friend of the site, sent along a link to a YouTube video of the first song of the set, "Can You Feel It?"

I haven't given a lot of coverage to 63 Crayons, the Athens band of Suzanne Allison, Derek Almstead, Ben Davis, and Charlie Johnston, but hopefully this will start to redress that wrong. The band has decided to self-release its next CD, Spoils for Survivors, after taking a poll of those who would be interested in pre-ordering it. Now I'm encouraging everyone to take a listen to their music at their MySpace page, and then pre-order it, either at the same page or at their official homepage. Those who pre-order the CD will receive, at no extra charge, a special bonus CD-R of unreleased material.

Southern Shelter has just posted online the epic Olivia Tremor Control reunion show at Orange Twin from August 6, 2005. Twenty-five tracks that will fill two CDs, and they play rarities such as "Take the Time to Turn Around" and "The Pressure."

Olivia Tremor Control at Orange Twin 8-6-05