Blur drama

Much of the mainstream media, including NLtS, have long been reporting optimistically about the possibility of a Blur reunion. But in a recent interview with NME, frontman Damon Albarn claimed that "is not going to happen." So despite what Alex James's sunnier remarks may imply, this sobering statement certainly does dampen hopes.

From the Basement comes to the States

Superproducer Nigel Godrich's show/podcast From the Basement has come to the United States. You can catch episodes of the show on Rave HD (the 24/7 music network available to people who watch TV in high definition). The show features (excellent) artists doing intimate, audience-free live performances. The first episode, which aired on February 22nd, featured The White Stripes, The Shins, and Neil Hannon of the Divine Comedy. Artists to be featured on future shows include: Thom Yorke of Radiohead, Albert Hammond Jr. of The Strokes, Envelopes, Beck, Jarvis Cocker, Jamie Lidell, Sonic Youth, José Gonzales, Laura Marling, PJ Harvey, Super Furry Animals, Free Blood, Operator Please, Damien Rice, Eels, Autolux, and Architecture in Helsinki. Something for those of our readership who have High Definition television. Bourgeois scum. Just kidding.

-PTC

Noise Pop gets rolling tonight

It's officially festival season, and it starts right here in the Bay Area. The lineup is a strong one, so if you're aimless in The City between tonight and 2 March, make your way to this festival that sprawls San Francisco. Highlights of the enormous lineup include A Place to Bury Strangers, Blitzen Trapper, Bodies of Water, British Sea Power, The Broken West, Cursive, Darker My Love, DJ Amplive (Zion I), Film School, Fleet Foxes, Great Northern, Helio Sequence, Holy Fuck, Magic Bullets, The Magnetic Fields, The Mountain Goats, MSTRKRFT, The Rosebuds, Stellastarr*, Adam Stephens (of Two Gallants), Kelley Stoltz, Throw Me The Statue, Tilly And The Wall, The Walkmen, What Made Miluakwee famous, and Working for a Nuclear Free City.

The whole lineup is here: http://noisepop.com/2008/performers.php

Participating venues include 12 Galaxies, ATA, Bimbo's, Bottom of the Hill, Café Du Nord, GAMH, The Independent, Park Life, Mezzanine, Mighty, Thee Parkside, Queen's Nails Annex, The Rickshaw Shop, Roxie, and of course, Slim's

For their addresses, go here: http://noisepop.com/2008/venues.php

A full schedule of the events of the week can be found here: http://noisepop.com/2008/schedule.php

Happy show-hopping to all those who plan to attend. NLtS will offer coverage of appearances by The Mountain Goats and Tilly and the Wall and a nonfestival show from Cursive this week.

Sasquatch lineup announced (omg)

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner. The lineup for 2008's Sasquatch! Music Festival has been announced, and it decisively trumps every other lineup we have seen until this point. Here is the exceptional collection of artists:

R.E.M.
The Cure
The Flaming Lips U.F.O. Show
Death Cab for Cutie
Modest Mouse
M.I.A.
Flight of the Conchords
Rodrigo Y Gabriela
Michael Franti and Spearhead
The Breeders
Built To Spill
The Hives
Tegan and Sara
The Presidents
Ghostland Observatory
Ozomatli
The New Pornographers
Blue Scholars
The National
The Kooks
Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks
Cold War Kids
Beirut
Rogue Wave
Okkervil River
Fleet Foxes
Kinski
Mates of State
Sera Cahoone
Crudo (featuring Mike Patton and Dan the Automator)
Battles
Destroyer
Dyme Def
The Blakes
Pela
Jamie Lidell
The cops
Dengue Fever
Siberian
Say Hi
White Rabbits
David Bazan
The Little Ones
"Awesome"
Dead Confederate
The Heavenly States
65daysofstatic
Grand Archives
Vince Mira with the Roy Kay Trio
Joshua Morrison
Throw Me The Statue
J. Tillman
The Shaky Hands
Thao Nguyen with the Get Down Stay Down
Matt Costa
The Cave Singers

Drool. You can, of course, count on extensive coverage of this festival here at NLtS.

Norway's Øya Festival...will probably kick ass

Amidst the flurry of disappointing, over-hyped American festival lineup releases, Norway's Øya Festival, which will take place August 5-9, has emerged as a major contender for festival of the year. NLtS favourites will abound at this Scandinavian soiree. Here are some of the choicest selections from the lineup:

My Bloody Valentine (pictured above)
The National
Okkervil River
Girl Talk
Iron and Wine
Sigur Rós
HEALTH
Holy Fuck
José Gonzales
Lightspeed Champion
N.E.R.D.
Yeasayer

Add a bunch of local acts (who, if they are as discriminating with their domestic goods as they are with their foreign ones, should be fantastic), and you're left with what is quite a formidable lineup. Almost enough to make one want to go to Norway.

Independent music emerges on top at the Oscars

Where the Grammys all but completely failed to do justice to any independent artists (cite the robberies of Feist and Justice to name only two), the Oscars went out of their way to honour independent music. Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova were awarded Best Song honours for "Falling Slowly", the flagship track from the surprise smash hit Once. Hansard and Irglova beat the odds by winning out over - count them - three songs from Enchanted. It's nice to see indie artists getting some recommendations. Hansard and Irglova can add that to their list of accolades along with their coveted spot on this blogger's Top 25 Tracks of 2007. Congratulations to Mr Hansard and Ms Irglova for their accomplishment.

-PTC

Phoenix prep new record

Everyone's faovurite Parisian genre-hoppers, Phoenix (pictured above), are in the studio working on a new album to follow the wonderful It's Never Been Like That, a record which was a prominent player in many album of the year discussions in 2006. The album is still without a title as of yet, but is due for release in the summer of this year. Stay with us here at Never Learned to Swim for all salient details on this effort.

-PTC

Art Brut's surprise single

EMI recently released Art Brut's "Pump Up the Volume" as a follow-up single to the band's popular sophomore album, It's a Bit Complicated. Here's the catch: Art Brut didn't know the single was being released. That's right. EMI released this single - as well as a video of one of the band's live performances - completely over the collective head of Art Brut. The band is as confused as you are: "it seems EMI have decided to release 'Pump Up the Volume' without informing either the band or myself, making any kind of widescale promotion rather difficult."

First the Radiohead greatest hits album, now this. Quite a month for the fellows over at EMI.

-PTC