Photos/Review: All Tomorrow's Parties - Minehead, UK (Day One)

George Hurley and Mike Watt performing as the Minutemen Duet

All Tomorrow's Parties curated by Jeff Mangum

@ Butlin's Holiday Centre, Minehead, UK

Day One - March 9, 2012

Photos/Review: Rhona "Wiglet Bill" Aquilina

I’ve been attending ATP’s festivals here in the UK for over ten years now and I can honestly say that never have I waited so eagerly and so long from ticket purchase to the event itself. The sheer brilliance of the line up could have only added to the panic among ticket holders when it was announced a couple of months before the originally scheduled date of the festival in December that it was to be postponed until this past weekend. The lingering mystery surrounding the postponement did nothing to settle fears as to whether the event would actually take place, perhaps because the line up was turning out to be so very awesome it might literally have been too good to be true.

But none of that matters now we are neared the end of our 235 mile journey from the suburbs of south London to the charming West Somerset seaside town of Minehead. The Butlin’s resort where the festival is held is nestled right on the promenade facing the beach and the Bristol Channel.

After a quick stop for supplies at the local supermarket, we headed to the check-in as it opened and then to our accommodation and got settled in. Each apartment comes with a television that provides two channels of television programming, the content of one being chosen by the curator, and the other by ATP. As the bands weren’t to begin for almost three hours we watched a couple of hours of Monty Python’s Flying Circus as chosen by Jeff Mangum.

2012 American Songbook Season Adds Thurston Moore, Merrill Garbus (tUnE-yArDs), & More

Check out more photos from Thurston Moore's Music Hall Of Williamsburg performance over here!

Known for its diverse array of performers and styles, Lincoln Center's celebrated American Songbook series is returning on January 12 to explore the best in American popular song across all genres. A couple of notable indie rock names on the roster, however, are Sonic Youth co-founder Thurston Moore (who we're kind of huge fans of here) as well as Future Nostalgia candidate Merill Garbus, a.k.a. tUnE-yArDs (who coincidentally enough covered Sonic Youth earlier this year). 

Thurston Moore will be rocking a solo acoustic set on February 2, while tUnE-yArDs will nab the February 9 slot at NYC's world-renowned music and arts center. Tickets are onsale beginning November 14 - check out the American Songbook website for further details on packages and the full lineup of artists for the month.

Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore anounce they are splitting up

Sonic Youth @ Williamsburg Waterfront in August (more here)

Well... shit. Didn't see this one coming. According to a Matador rep (via Spin):

"Musicians Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore, married in 1984, are announcing they have separated. Sonic Youth, with both Kim and Thurston involved, will proceed with its South American tour dates in November. Plans beyond that tour are uncertain. The couple has requested respect for their personal privacy and does not wish to issue further comment."

Sad. I'm hoping that Sonic Youth show we caught in August wasn't the last ever New York City performance. We wish them both the best!

DVR Alert: Thurston Moore playing David Letterman 8/31

Thurston Moore @ Music Hall of Williamsburg in May (more here)

We're still sort of in shock over the mind blowing Sonic Youth show that went down in Brooklyn on Friday, and although it was a one-off show for the band (well, until November), frontman Thurston Moore has added some more solo dates to his schedule. Though there are no New York City dates as of yet, he will be playing Late Show with David Letterman on August 31 according to Sonic Youth's Twitter page, meaning he'll be in the area that night with nothing much to do. Something tells me that either a small scale show will be taking place, possibly at the Stone. All speculation, but tell me the gap in the tour schedule doesn't look awfully suspicious.

Check out Thurston Moore, Sonic Youth and Disappears' (Steve Shelley's other band) tour dates below, listen to Thurston's latest album Demolished Thoughts on Spotify, and watch his video for "Circulation," all below the jump...

Photos/Review: Sonic Youth @ Williamsburg Waterfront

Sonic Youth @ Williamsburg Waterfront - August 12, 2011
Photos: Chris / Review: Chris & Colin Fitzgerald

The past few outdoor shows I've been to have been plagued by bad weather (both Levon Helm and They Might Be Giants got me soaked in the rain), so heading over to the Williamsburg Waterfront Friday night on one of the sunniest days of the summer was quite satisfying. Knowing that the night ahead of me would be seeing one of the best lineups of the season only made it better.

Opener Kurt Vile, who has become a Thurston Moore protege of sorts recently, battled the blaring sun in his eyes with his band The Violators, playing a short thirty minute set to a half empty venue. I've listened to Vile's Childish Prodigy and Smoke Ring For My Halo a few times over the past year, and though I always remembered really liking what I was hearing, nothing has really stuck in my head. Not that Vile is going for catchy, hum-in-your-head-all-day songs. His music truly catches you in the moment with his visceral landscapes of sound, the kind of songs you play on the road late at night and picture yourself getting into a fatal car accident. Really sort of dark, yet beautiful reverberant droning songs that make you contemplative in a way that's rarely achieved in indie music today. A great way to start the night.

Watch: Thurston Moore - "Circulation" (Official Video)

Via Matador Records

So yeah, it's a pretty safe assumption that we're huge fans of Thurston Moore and his latest solo album, Demolished Thoughts. We've reviewed it, seen him perform it live at the Music Hall of Williamsburg (and again at Other Music where we were literally a foot away from the man), and even watched him on late-night TV.

Now, via Stereogum and Matador Records' Matablog, we're happy to share the official video for one of my favorite tracks off of Demolished Thoughts, "Circulation." It's an awesomely trippy match for the song itself, and Thurston Moore says the video "was inspired by the free-spirit poet/artist girls of Northampton Massachusetts who would explode and levitate into expressionistic transcendence whenever cool records would spin by local DJs Bill Nace, Jake Meghinsky and, when asked (rarely) – T Moore hisself."

Check it out after the jump and see him on tour through the summer at the dates / locations below, as well as here in NYC on 8/12 at the Williamsburg Waterfront with an under-the-radar band called Sonic Youth.

Listen to Wilco's new song "I Might" and a live stream of their Solid Sound Festival

Jeff Tweedy w/ Yo La Tengo @ Maxwell's (more here)

Wilco's Solid Sound Festival is currently underway this weekend in North Adams, MA, and as a special treat, the Jeff Tweedy-led group have released a brand new song, "I Might," which you can listen to below courtesy of Stereogum. The song is Wilco's first release for their label dBpm, which appropriately has a cover of Nick Lowe's "I Love My Label" as its b-side.

Wilco - I Might by ListenBeforeYouBuy

Solid Sound's lineup also includes other great acts such as Levon Helm Band, Thurston Moore and Syl Johnson & the Sweet Divines. If you're nowhere near North Adams, MA you can listen to a live stream of the festival on WSSR 88.7FM's UStream page, or directly below. Enjoy!


Stream videos at Ustream

Thurston Moore & Bob Mould Played Jimmy Fallon + Bonus Thurston Moore Videos from La Blogotheque

As you can tell by our recent posts, we're pretty big Thurston Moore fans here at Fucking Nostalgic. And as we mentioned last night on our Facebook page, Thurston stopped by Late Night With Jimmy Fallon last night to perform a live version of "Circulation" off of his excellent new album Demolished Thoughts. Check out the performance above, as well as a web-only exclusive cut of another standout song from the album, "Blood Never Lies," below.

Photos/Review: Thurston Moore @ Other Music

Thurston Moore @ Other Music, May 23rd, 2011
Photos: Chris; Review: Kid Kaboodle

For three decades, mop-headed noise guitar god and Sonic Youth co-founder Thurston Moore has laid waste to pop’s status quo, questioning what rock guitar can and should be and pushing past the limitations of his instrument’s voice into heretofore undiscovered realms of sound. Arguably the most tuneful of the group of bands associated with the magnesium flash that was NO WAVE, Sonic Youth’s noisy experiments in chaotic ambience and song structure have proven profoundly influential, to an extent that was probably unimaginable when they first exploded onto the New York underground post-punk scene in the mid 80’s. Against all odds, their jagged aesthetic gained ground and it’s echoes were soon heard in the early alternative and grunge scenes of the 90’s, effectively setting the stylistic tone of the era. Where before, glistening production and the illusion of flawless performance were the industry standard, suddenly dissonance, low fidelity and raw emotion ruled the day.

At the time of this writing, the stylistic innovations that Sonic Youth helped popularize have been thoroughly assimilated by the modern rock milieu and the gritty soundscapes and frenetically angular tonalities that were the band’s hallmark are routinely mined and recycled by newer bands with differing levels of success. Through it all, Sonic Youth have resisted the temptation to compete, choosing instead to focus on their craft, releasing consistently interesting (and increasingly more melodic) music, with no sign of abating. Their story thus far has been one of gradual refinement; of taking something scuffed-up, dirty and presumably worthless, and transmuting it into sonic gold. With this in mind, it should come as no surprise that in Mr. Moore’s latest Beck-produced solo outing, Demolished Thoughts, the dreamy menace of the sound he helped to create with SY is further distilled and refined into something solitary and crystalline; a deceptively rustic song cycle that for all of it’s organic beauty and cozy familiarity to the initiated is every bit as unsettling as the album’s name implies.

Review: Thurston Moore - Demolished Thoughts

Thurston Moore Demolished Thoughts [Matador/Ecstatic Peace; 2011]
By Jessica Callender

On an early Tuesday morning, faint notes of summer are finally drifting in and I’m comfortably settled in my bed listening to Thurston Moore’s Demolished Thoughts which was released yesterday. Moore, who initially got his start as the lead singer and accompanying guitarist of Sonic Youth has maintained an almost omnipresence within the alternative indie scene since the ‘80s. As such, his wealth of experience clearly shows throughout the new album as it contains elements that are nostalgically woodsy, yet refined as acoustic notes of guitar, violin, and harp are layered beautifully throughout.

In addition to a somewhat thematic feel, Demolished never has any true variances in regards to energy levels and chords as Moore’s detached vocals croon around the simple idea of love, and love lost, especially present in tracks such as “Blood Never Lies”, “In Silver Rain with a Paper Key”, “Mina Loy” and the album’s final song “January.” With Beck Hansen as his producer, the duo create an entirely relaxed environment that is led both by instrumentation and evocative lyrics; Beck’s touches are somewhat subtle as soft notes generally point in the direction of his own inspiration, most notably from his 2002 record Sea Change.

Most of the tracks are quite long, the average track just about a little over five minutes. But none are quite the journey into sound as the track “Space,” an almost seven minute song with a three minute intro, poetic verse, and then a three minute outro. It works though, as the composition of the track transports you to an airy space in a trippy-like fashion. Another favorite I must comment on is lead single and album opener “Benediction,” an allegory of sweetly touching, mildly obsessive lyrics which also almost became the title track for the entire album. Moore touches upon his roots on the track “Circulation” which honestly sounds like Sonic Youth unplugged complete with sawed-over strings and twists and turns throughout the melody, a truly nice surprise.

Demolished Thoughts appears to be Moore’s way of letting the public know that he’s still in the game and although he may not be trying to win, he’s definitely keeping us mellow.

---

We will have photos and a full review of Thurston's intimate performance at Other Music this past Monday up shortly to conclude our coverage of Demolished Thoughts.

Photos: Thurston Moore @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

 Thurston Moore @ Music Hall of Williamsburg, May 20th, 2011

Thurston Moore is undeniably one of the more iconic figures of the NYC music scene, being one of the most prolific and prevalent musicians of the past three decades. And so when he takes the time to record a solo album with another iconic figure of music on production duties (Beck), it's a pretty special event. To celebrate, Thurston played a show with a full band to support him at the Music Hall of Williamsburg on Friday night.

With the single strum of his guitar, it was impossible to forget that you were hearing the unique and incomparable Thurston Moore playing mere feet away from you. You could blame the alternative tuning methods he uses for that distinct sound, but I suspect it's more than just that. It's the absolutely gorgeous way in which he plays that reminds you he's one of the most innovative guitarists and songwriters of our time. Opening with "Mina Loy" and "Blood Never Lies" from the new album Demolished Thoughts, and with an endless loop of slow motion black & footage as the backdrop, Mr. Moore set the stage for the night. This was to be a mellow performance in comparison to the intensity of a typical Sonic Youth show, but would still carry the edge and euphoria you would expect from a performer such as himself.

Other songs off the album, "Space" and lead single, "Benediction" came off absolutely beautiful with the addition of harp and violin, his drummer and additional guitarist present but never once drawing more attention than needed. The highlights of his 80 minute set were the extended jams that closed "Orchard Street" and "Circulation," in which Thurston would play higher and higher on the neck of his guitar, so high in fact you were afraid he would run out of room and would have no choice but to spontaneously combust. Luckily, that didn't happen. But the bliss that Moore created onstage transcended into the crowd, and during those intense moments of his frantic strumming, the somewhat paralyzed audience would shot out almost involuntarily in appreciation. In between songs, Thurston would dedicate songs to openers I Feel Tractor (who were great) and poet Eileen Myles (who was also great) and briefly chat with the crowd about his family members in the audience, the impending Rapture, and yes, Bridesmaids. "I thought it was a masterpiece," Thurston stated.

If you haven't already pre-ordered Demolished Thoughts directly from Matador, you still have until 11:59pm tonight to enter our contest and win a copy on double LP vinyl (which includes the download code for the album in mp3 format). Thurston plays a free show tonight at Other Music at 8pm. Full set of photos (including the setlist) from Thurston's set on Friday are below...

This Week's Nostalgia (5/23-5/29)

The world didn't end last night, which means there's loads of a shows to still look forward to this week. Last week brought us some great shows including the Thurston Moore record release party for Demolished Thoughts at Music Hall of Williamsburg. Our coverage from that show will be up tomorrow, and you also still have a chance to win a copy of the new record from us, so get to it if you haven't already. There were also tons of tickets that went on sale, which you can check out. But this week will be yet an another exhaustive week for shows so let's not waste any time. Here are the highlights for this week's shows...

Thurston Moore @ Other Music - Monday, May 23rd

If you missed his show on Friday, you still have a chance to check out Thurston for free at quintessential indie record store Other Music. Like I said, our review and photos are forthcoming, but I can tell you this much: Thurston Moore put on an amazing show with his band. The free show at Other Music will also include his full band, which may make less room for people to get in, but I think as long as you get there at around 6pm you should be okay for the 8pm start time. Good luck!

The Cars @ Roseland Ballroom - Wednesday, May 25th

The Cars are back with Ric Ocasek, something that was never expected to happen again, but nonetheless their tour hits New York City this Wednesday at the Roseland Ballroom. Reviews from the tour have been excellent, and tickets for the show are sold out, but always check craigslist for people getting rid of tickets last minute. You can also still stream their entire new album, Move Like This, over at Rolling Stone. The band also plays this year's Lollapalooza, and you can grab a ticket for that over here.

Dylan Fest 2011 @ Bowery Ballroom - Thursday, May 26th & Friday, May 27th

According to the Bowery Presents website, Dylan Fest 2011 is "a night to get drunk and celebrate Bob Dylan's 70th Birthday!" Sounds awesome. The lineup for the shows will include Norah Jones, Nikolai Fraiture (the Strokes), Evan Dando (the Lemonheads), Tad Kubler (the Hold Steady), Will Forte and Jason Sudeikis of SNL (??) and tons more. Tickets for both shows come out to roughly $23 after fees and are still available for both nights. Note: Dylan is not performing at this event. Have fun!

Black N Blue Ball @ Webster Hall, Saturday May 28th

I was never huge in the whole NYHC scene as a teenager, but I was into a few bands. Gorilla Biscuits and Agnostic Front were two of those bands. I always found it a little weird that CIV was formed from the ashes of Gorilla Biscuits considering how poppy CIV was. Either way, Gorilla Biscuits are back and playing the Black N Blue Ball at Webster Hall for what is sure to be a chaotic and lengthy show. I'd probably check it out if tickets were a little cheaper and I wasn't going to Maine to see Mission of Burma, but according to their website you can still get a ticket at the door day-of (online tickets are sold out) for $40. They suggest you get there early if that's the case. Word of advice: stay out of the pit.



That's all I've got for you this week. If there are any other shows coming up you're particularly nostalgic about, please let us know in the comments section below. Enjoy!

"Like" this post to win a copy of Thurston Moore's Demolished Thoughts

Thurston Moore's brand new solo album Demolished Thoughts comes out Tuesday, May 24th on Matador Records (if you haven't been paying attention, we've brought it up a lot). In support of the the release, Thurston will begin his tour tonight at the Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn, and tickets are still available. He will also play a free show at Other Music at 8pm on Monday, May 23rd at 8pm. Good luck to those who try to make it in.

If you're too low on cash to pick up a copy of Demolished Thoughts, or just feel like winning something, Fucking Nostalgic has a copy of the album on double LP vinyl to giveaway. All you have to do is head to our Facebook page and "like" this post. If you don't have a turntable, hang your head in shame (just kidding), but know that it's okay as the vinyl includes a voucher to download the album in mp3 format. A winner will be selected at random and contacted for shipping details. The contest ends at 11:59pm Monday night. Good luck!

In the meantime, you can listen to Demolished Thoughts in its entirety over at NPR and purchase it at iTunes. Below, take a look at the groovy inner vinyl artwork and the video for lead single, "Benediction."

Thurston Moore's Demolished Thoughts available on iTunes TODAY

Thurston Moore's new Beck-produced album, Demolished Thoughts is available on iTunes today, one week before it's official release next tuesday on cool blue vinyl (see above). Here's a tune from the album to whet your appetites.

This Week's Nostalgia (5/16-5/22)

Welcome to the latest feature at Fucking Nostalgic, "This Week's Nostalgia," wherein we outline shows we're excited about for the week ahead in the New York City area. All of the shows featured here and loads more can be found on the right of of this page in "Upcoming Nostalgia." Click on any of those shows and you will be brought to an external website to purchase tickets for the event.

Last week brought us some great shows from Yo La Tengo and Echo & The Bunnymen. We will have our coverage of the Echo & The Bunnymen show from Saturday up shortly (with a full set of photos), but for now let's see what's in store for us this week...

Urge Overkill @ the Bowery Ballroom - Tuesday, May 17th

You may best remember Urge Overkill as the band that plays "Girl, You'll Be A Woman Soon" in that scene from Pulp Fiction when Uma Thurman accidentally snorts heroin and passes out in a pool of her own blood and vomit (see left). Or, you may remember them as that band who was really popular in the '90s and subsequently got involved with drugs and were eventually dropped by their record label. However, the band is back and plays the Bowery Ballroom on Tuesday, so let's forget all that negativity and immerse ourselves in the sweet joy that is Urge Overkill. Tickets are still on sale.

Thurston Moore @ Music Hall of Williamsburg - Friday, May 20th

There's no two ways around it. Thurston Moore is an indie music legend. When he's not discussing the importance of punk rock, or collaborating with Yoko Ono, or playing in... um, SONIC YOUTH, Thurston spends his time writing and recording solo albums. His latest, Demolished Thoughts, produced by fellow boyish-looking musician Beck comes out May 24th on Matador Records. If you haven't already checked it out, download the beautiful lead single "Benediction" right over here. Make sure to find yourself at this performance as you never know what fellow NYC musicians might make their way onstage. Tickets are still on sale.

Ad-Rock (DJ Set) @ Webster Hall - Sunday, May 22nd

You won't be seeing the legendary Beastie Boys on tour in support of their latest album Hot Sauce Committee Part Two until Adam Yauch (MCA) is fully treated for cancer (we're all praying for you Adam!). In the meantime, Ad-Rock will be keeping busy with DJ sets like the one he did at MoMA a couple weeks ago. This event is actually an all ages benefit for the Children's Museum of the Arts, with all proceeds going to support increased expansion of the CMA'S free arts programming for children in NYC. Ad-Rock will be DJ'ing and hosting the event, with other performers as well. There is a carnival from 1-5pm and the concert goes from 6-9pm. Great event for a great cause. Tickets are still available and more information can be found here.

Elvis Costello & the Imposters' "The Revolver Tour" @ Beacon Theatre - May 22-24th

I'm not sure which came first; Yo La Tengo's idea to do their own Wheel Spin show based on Elvis Costello's tour in the '80s, or Elvis Costello's idea to revive his Revolver Tour, in which his entire setlist is determined by the spin of a wheel. Well, they're both great ideas so let's not worry about it. Elvis Costello is playing three shows at the Beacon Theatre starting this Sunday, and they're sure to be excellent. Tickets are sold out, but craigslist is hopping. Good Luck!

Doug Gillard (ex-Guided By Voices) @ Southpaw - Sunday, May 22nd

Sunday is pretty packed with nostalgia, and if you want a more intimate performance, this might be the best one for you. Doug Gillard was a part of the Guided By Voices lineup that took over when the "classic lineup" dissolved. You may best know Gillard's contributions to the band in the form of one of my favorite GBV songs, "I Am A Tree." But Gillard's solo work does not dissapoint. I caught him open for Guided By Voices on New Year's Eve (where the photo to the left is from) and not only was his set alone a treat, he and his band closed out with "I Am A Tree" featuring none other than GBV frontman Robert Pollard on vocals. It doesn't appear that tickets for this show can be purchased online, but it is $10 and more info can be found here courtesy of ohmyrockness.

That's it for now. If there are any other shows coming up you're particularly nostalgic about, leave a comment and tell us about it. Cheers!

Thurston Moore playing free show at Other Music 5/23

In our contact section we mention that you’ll probably read a lot about J Mascis and Mike Watt on Fucking Nostalgic. Well, you can add Thurston Moore to that list because like those other two guys, he is really awesome. Matador Records has just announced that Thurston Moore will be doing a FREE in-store performance at one of my favorite record stores, Other Music on Monday, May 23rd. The new album from the Sonic Youth frontman, Demolished Thoughts, is produced by none other than Beck and will be available the next day on May 24th. You won’t want to miss this intimate performance so be sure to get there well before 8pm when the event starts.

Watch: New videos from Thurston Moore & J Mascis

Thurston Moore's "Benediction" from the forthcoming Demolished Thoughts (produced by Beck)

J Mascis's "Is It Done" from Several Shades of Why

Download a new track from Thurston Moore

Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore has been a busy man since the ‘80s, and thirty years down the road he still shows no signs of slowing down. Aside from steadily releasing albums with SY (who play in Brooklyn in August) and curating shows at the Stone in Manhattan, he is currently prepping the release of his upcoming solo album, entitled Demolished Thoughts. And now, you can listen to a track off that album, “Circulation” over at Matador Records’ own Matablog.

Thurston will be touring with the great Kurt Vile & the Violators in July in support of Demolished Thoughts, but you can also catch him on a string of solo dates, including a show at the Music Hall of Williamsburg on 5/20 (tickets still on sale), leading up to that tour. Full tour dates for Mr. Moore via Matablog are below.

Kim Gordon playing the Stone on Saturday

Sonic Youth’s bassist/guitarist/singer Kim Gordon will be playing a solo show (with guests) in East Village venue the Stone this Saturday (4/23). The show falls under a Thurston Moore-curated run at the Stone, “Ecstatic Peace,” named after the record label founded by the Sonic Youth frontman.

For the full list of shows curated by Moore, which will run until the end of April, check out the Stone’s calendar. The Stone does not sell advance tickets, but it is only $10 and you can line up to get in prior to the doors opening at 7pm. We will be covering the Kim Gordon show and will post a full set of photos!

In other Sonic Youth news, as reported over the weekend, 1991: The Year Punk Broke is finally getting a DVD release this fall.