Shannon Stephens – “The Most Delicious Hours”
Dir. Glen Hwang

Here’s a new video in honor of Asthmatic Kitty‘s reissue this week of Shannon Stephens‘s self-titled 2000 debut, repackaged with brand-new artwork and 2 previously unreleased bonus tracks. Do yourself a favor and grab a copy here from the good folks at AK.

Tom Zé – “Síncope Joãobim” From the first-ever US release of Estuando a Bossa, due out from Luaka Bop on 10/8, concurrent with a brand-new vinyl box-set, Studies of Tom Zé: Explaining Things So I Can Confuse You. The set includes Estudando o Samba, Estudando o Pagode, and Estudando a Bossa on 180g vinyl, along with an assortment of extras and other goodies.

NPR is streaming the new Jesca Hoop album, Hunting My Dress (out July 27th).

Mother Jones interviews Ariel Pink.

The Guardian and Clash both profile the reunited Vaselines.

The A.V. Club lists 23 cheerful songs about murder, death, and the apocalypse.

The Summer Mix Series 2010 continues to add downloadable mixes.

The Line of Best Fit interviews singer-songwriter Micah P. Hinson.

I Am Fuel, You Are Friends shares a summer music mix.

Frank YangThe Pitchfork Music Festival occupies an interesting niche in the festival landscape. It’s too small to fairly compare with the national destination-type events, but too high-profile to be considered properly boutique. The lineup is generally solid from top to bottom, but in a mid-level club sense. The festival's Fridays past tended to feature a single evening feature event like a “Don’t Look Back” full album performance, but this year they opted for a half-day of regular programming and squeezing in a couple more headliners. I arrived at Union Park, just a little outside of The Loop, just in time to hear Sharon Van Etten kick the day and the festival off on the main stage, dubbed Aluminum, previewing songs from her forthcoming album Epic. The bright – nay, blazing – afternoon sun wasn’t the most natural setting for her dark and vulnerable songs, but it’s remarkable that even massively amplified in the outdoors, her gorgeous voice was able to sound so intimate. She may not have had the same name recognition as some of the others in the lineup but hopefully for the festival early birds, she’ll have been a welcome discovery.

Photos: Sharon Van Etten @ Aluminum Stage – July 16, 2010
MP3: Sharon Van Etten – “Love More”
MP3: Sharon Van Etten – “I Couldn’t Save You”
Video: Sharon Van Etten – “For You”
MySpace: Sharon Van Etten

The two main stages at Pitchfork were set up in close proximity and at 90 degrees to one another, and Friday’s staggered set times made it easy to dash from one to the other – or just turn your butt, for the seated – and catch the next act. Inaugurating the Connector stage was The Tallest Man On Earth, and though also performing solo he clearly didn’t suffer from any lack of audience familiarity – folks were stoked for Kristian Matsson and his set didn’t disappoint them. The charisma on display the one time I’d seen him at an in-store scaled quite well to the bigger venue and as he lurched and lunged around the stage whilst showcasing the upbeat folk from The Wild Hunt, the crowd collectively swooned. Though that may have also been from the heat.

Photos: The Tallest Man On Earth @ Connector Stage – July 16, 2010
MP3: The Tallest Man On Earth – “King Of Spain”
MP3: The Tallest Man On Earth – “Burden Of Tomorrow”

Liars and I had never been properly introduced, with the one time I tried giving them a listen apparently coming when they were at their most abrasive and I quickly moved on with my life. But frontman Angus Andrew was a compelling stage presence, aggressively prowling around during songs and cracking off-colour jokes between, including an invitation to use the water station in his pants. Entertaining, but the lack of familiarity kept me from getting too engaged.

Photos: Liars @ Connector Stage – July 16, 2010
MP3: Liars – “Scissor”

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